Understanding Phone Calls from Manchester FCI: What to Know Before You Answer
Phone calls from Manchester FCI can be a lifeline, but they come with rules that catch families off guard. Here's how payment, monitoring, and TRUFONE recordkeeping work, so you understand what you're agreeing to when you pick up.
Manchester FCI provides phone access as a privilege to help inmates stay connected with family and community contacts. Like most privileges inside, phone use can be limited or restricted when facility management requires it.
Usually, the inmate pays for calls from Manchester FCI. In some situations, the receiving party may pay instead. One thing you cannot do: set up third-party or alternative calling arrangements. Even if it seems like an easy workaround, those arrangements are not permitted.
A notice posted next to each telephone at Manchester FCI tells inmates that calls are monitored. Treat that notice as the baseline expectation for every regular call when deciding what to discuss.
Legal communications are the exception. Unmonitored calls to attorneys are permitted in certain circumstances. This is separate from the standard monitoring that applies to regular personal calls.
Note: Third-party or alternative call arrangements are not permitted. Phone privileges can also be limited as part of the facility's correctional management responsibilities.
Calls go through the BOP's TRUFONE system, which collects more than just a phone number. The system can record the inmate's name, register number, and housing unit, plus telephone numbers on the inmate's calling list. It may also store biometric voice verification, call recordings, and the inmate's TRUFONE account balance.
Note: Calls are monitored, and TRUFONE collects recordings and voice verification. Assume any call can be recorded and tied back to the inmate's identity.
TRUFONE call recordings are stored temporarily and deleted after 180 days, unless they're still needed for legal or administrative purposes.
Practical Tips
- ✓ Assume the call may be monitored and recorded, and keep your conversation respectful and straightforward.
- ✓ Save legal strategy and sensitive attorney communications for proper attorney calls, since unmonitored attorney calls are only permitted in certain circumstances.
- ✓ Pay attention to whether the inmate is paying for the call or whether you are being asked to pay in a permitted way.
- Ask how the call is being paid for. Most calls are paid by the inmate, but in some cases the receiving party may pay.
- Avoid workarounds. Do not use third-party or alternative calling arrangements, since those arrangements are not permitted.
- Keep basic details handy. If you ever need to sort out a billing or call question, having the number used (and any TRUFONE account-related details you have access to) makes it easier to follow up.
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