FCI Lewisburg (medium-security)

FCI Lewisburg is a medium-security federal correctional institution for men in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. It held about 594 people as of November 2025. It does not offer the Residential Drug Abuse Program. The institution's main number is 570-523-1251.

MALE

Gender

MEDIUM

Security Level

594

Population (July 9, 2026)

No RDAP

Location

Physical location: LEWISBURG, PA 17837

Mailing address: 2400 ROBERT F. MILLER DRIVE, LEWISBURG, PA 17837

Visitation

There are many specific rules and procedures to be aware of when you're considering visiting the institution. Read more on our Visitation Guide.

For full, current visiting rules and scheduling, always check the institution's official page on the Bureau of Prisons website: Official BOP Page.

Daily life and programs

Operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, FCI Lewisburg is a medium-security federal prison for men located near the borough of Lewisburg in Kelly Township, Union County, Pennsylvania. Designed by architect Alfred Hopkins, the institution opened in 1932 as the North Eastern Penitentiary and was one of four federal prisons to open that year. For most of its history, the facility operated as the United States Penitentiary (USP) Lewisburg. Functioning as a high-security 'Big House', it earned the nickname 'Mafia Row' for the many organized-crime figures held there over the decades. In February 2021, the Bureau of Prisons redesignated the main institution from high-security to medium-security, and it now carries the FCI Lewisburg name. An adjacent minimum-security satellite camp houses additional low-risk male offenders, operating as a distinct facility from the main medium-security institution.

The main FCI accommodates roughly 600 to 700 men, and the neighboring camp adds several hundred more, creating a combined population that has run between about 990 and 1,100 during recent counts. These figures vary by date, with Prison Professors and InmateAid reporting about 628 individuals in the main institution and 477 in the camp, versus 684 in the main facility and 309 in the camp as of September 2023 per Wikipedia. The Bureau of Prisons' own population report, dated July 9, 2026, lists 594 in the main institution and 469 in the satellite camp. RDAP is listed on the Bureau's RDAP location document at the satellite camp (SCP Lewisburg) specifically, not at the main medium-security FCI. Daily life follows a structured medium-security routine consisting of standing counts, work details, meals, education blocks, and recreation periods. Following the 2021 conversion, Wikipedia and BOP-related reporting describe Lewisburg as a designated Communications Management Unit (CMU) site, functioning as a restrictive unit that closely monitors and limits inmate mail, telephone, and visitation. While the long-running federal CMUs are located at USP Marion and FCI Terre Haute, coverage remains mixed regarding how fully Lewisburg's CMU was implemented. Earlier, the institution was known for its Special Management Unit (SMU) designed for the system's most violent and disruptive inmates, a program that was later relocated to USP Thomson.

At FCI Lewisburg, inmate programming centers on the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP). This voluntary residential treatment track lasts roughly nine months and entails about 500 hours of participation, and successful completion can qualify eligible inmates for up to a 12-month sentence reduction. The facility also operates Federal Prison Industries (UNICOR) work assignments. Offering about $0.23 to $1.15 per hour versus $0.12 to $0.40 for institutional details, these roles pay more than standard institution jobs. As a result, UNICOR positions rank among the most sought-after jobs in the federal system, alongside food-service, maintenance, landscaping, and laundry work. Additional offerings include GED and adult-education classes, vocational and occupational training, anger-management and parenting courses, and reentry preparation. For engaging in such productive activity and program participation, eligible inmates can receive First Step Act earned-time credits.

Throughout both its penitentiary era and its current medium-security operation, Lewisburg has drawn scrutiny over violence, use-of-force complaints, restrictive housing, lockdowns, and chronic staffing shortages. According to a 2024 Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General inspection, only 191 of 245 authorized Correctional Services positions (about 78 percent) were filled as of January 2024. This shortfall forced the facility to rely on significant mandatory overtime to keep correctional-officer posts covered, a pattern documented at many BOP facilities. Additionally, the prison's long history as a high-security penitentiary remains part of the surrounding community's identity and has been the subject of local historical exhibits.

First-hand accounts

First-person accounts and reporting about life at this facility. Experiences are individual and may not reflect current conditions.

• FCI Lewisburg RDAP phones - Reddit (r/Prison). Community thread about the RDAP unit and phone access at FCI Lewisburg's main medium-security institution.
• FCI Lewisburg - Reddit (r/PrisonWives). Family-member thread seeking information and shared experiences about a loved one placed at FCI Lewisburg.
• Federal Prison Placement - Reddit (r/PrisonWives). Family-member discussion of BOP placement that surfaced under an FCI Lewisburg search; references the institution.
• Anyone got good drawing of the cell or units? - Reddit (r/Prison). Thread requesting and discussing cell and housing-unit layout that surfaced under an FCI Lewisburg search.
• DOJ Office of Inspector General: unannounced inspection of FCI Lewisburg — DOJ OIG (2024 report). Primary federal watchdog document flagging staffing and healthcare-quality issues.
• 2025 oversight notification referencing FCI Lewisburg — Oversight.gov. Follow-on federal oversight document with fresh 2025 detail on the facility.
• Man who scaled PA prison fence sentenced to 15 months — Corrections1. Reported incident journalism on a contraband-smuggling case at FCI Lewisburg.
• Husband in BOP, what can I expect — Reddit (r/Prison). Wife of an inmate describing FCI Lewisburg as the first facility that actually felt more humane, with a real-time transfer update.

Inmate sketch of an SMU cell, B Block (circa 2010)

A former prisoner posting as u/Plastic-Tie-8910 published a hand-drawn pencil sketch of a single cell in the Special Management Unit at Lewisburg, captioned by the artist as "B 1, 13 cell USP Lewisburg 2010, phase 1 of the SMU". The drawing dates to the institution's penitentiary era, before the February 2021 redesignation to medium security, and depicts SMU housing rather than general population.

The sketch shows a narrow cell viewed from the bunk: a fixed steel table and stool along the left wall with a small mirror mounted below, a combination toilet and sink unit, a floor basin, and a heavy riveted steel door with a controlled port. It is one of very few first-hand visual records of the Lewisburg SMU, a program the Bureau of Prisons has since relocated to USP Thomson.

The artist retains copyright in the drawing. It is described here and linked at the source rather than reproduced.

Notable inmates

Name	Sentence	Offense	Dates
Whitey Bulger		Boston organized-crime boss and later FBI Ten Most Wanted fugitive; held at the main institution during his early sentence as a young bank robber	1963-1965 (USP Lewisburg era)
John Gotti		Boss of the Gambino crime family in New York City; held at the main penitentiary on an earlier conviction	1969-1972 (USP Lewisburg era)
Jimmy Hoffa	13 years (commuted 1971)	President of the Teamsters union; convicted of jury tampering and fraud, sentence commuted in 1971	1967-1971 (USP Lewisburg era)
Alger Hiss		Former State Department official convicted of perjury amid Soviet-espionage allegations	1950-1954 (USP Lewisburg era)
Henry Hill		Lucchese crime family associate and subject of the film Goodfellas	1972-1978 (USP Lewisburg era)
Anthony 'Tony Pro' Provenzano		Genovese crime family caporegime and Teamsters Local 560 president; associate of Jimmy Hoffa	1966-1970 (USP Lewisburg era)
John Wojtowicz		Bank robber whose crime inspired the 1975 film Dog Day Afternoon (portrayed by Al Pacino)	1973-1979 (USP Lewisburg era)
Larry Nassar	60 years federal	Former USA Gymnastics team physician convicted on federal child-pornography charges; transferred to the main institution on July 31, 2023 after being stabbed at USP Coleman	2023-present (current, medium-security FCI era)
Craig Carton	About 12 months; released to home confinement June 2020	Securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy (sports radio broadcaster)	Served at the satellite camp under the facility's former USP Lewisburg name