The Federal Correctional Institution, Mendota (FCI Mendota) is a medium-security United States

federal prison A federal prison is operated under the jurisdiction of a federal government as opposed to a state or provincial body. Federal prisons are used for people who violated federal law (U.S., Mexico), people considered dangerous (Brazil), or those sen ...

for male inmates in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. It is operated by the

Federal Bureau of Prisons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Justice that is responsible for all List of United States federal prisons, federal prisons ...

, a division of the

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. The facility also has an adjacent satellite prison camp housing minimum-security male offenders. FCI Mendota is located in central California, 36 miles west of

Fresno Fresno (; ) is a city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County, California, Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley (California), Central Valley region. It covers a ...

History

FCI Mendota opened in January 2012 after years of funding delays. The final cost of construction was $235 million. Mendota Mayor Robert Silva was pleased about the new jobs and revenue for local businesses that the prison would provide and encouraged the Bureau of Prisons to hire as many local residents as it could.

Facility and inmate life

FCI Mendota is located on 960 acres and is enclosed with a 12-foot-high razor wire fence. Inside the facility, inmates have access to educational programs where they may work toward their

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certificate and gain vocational training. Prisoners are required to work on a number of duties, ranging from food preparation in the dining hall to maintenance work. A recreation yard has basketball courts, a soccer field and a track. Inmates sleep in seven- by twelve-foot cells, complete with toilet and sink. They have access to a common area where they can exercise, shower, and watch basic cable television. Official counts are conducted at 12:05 a.m., 3 a.m., 5 a.m., 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. The 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. counts are known as "standing counts," during which inmates must stop what they are doing and stand up even if they are in bed. An additional standing count is held at 10 a.m. on holidays and weekends.

Notable inmates

References

{{Federal Bureau of Prisons 2012 establishments in California Buildings and structures in Fresno County, California Prisons in California Mendota Prisons completed in the 2010s

History

Facility and inmate life

Notable inmates

See also

References