Federal Correctional Institution - Milan

Federal Correctional Institution - Milan, or FCI Milan, is a low-security federal correctional institution with a detention center. This facility is located in Milan, Michigan, and houses a total of 1,366 male inmates.

Inmates are housed in dormitories that have two-person cubicles.

FCI Milan opened in the 1930’s as a “Federal Detention Farm” and it covers 332 acres and consists of 59 buildings. In the beginning, it housed female inmates, then it housed inmates sentenced under the Federal Youth Corrections Act of 1950. Next, it turned into a medium-security institution before its current status as a low-security institution.

FCI Milan features Milan High School where inmates can earn a high school diploma. FCI Milan is the only federal prison which has a high school diploma program.

The most notable former inmates include Helen Gillis and Evelyn Frechette, the wives of notorious bank robbers Baby Face Nelson and John Dillinger. They served one-year sentences after being convicted of aiding their husbands while hiding from authorities.

Murder and bank robber Tony Chebatoris also served time at FCI Milan before being executed on July 8, 1938. He is the only person ever to be executed inside the state of Michigan.

Prison Insights

Visiting Hours and Rules

Visiting hours at FCI Milan are:

Thursday 4:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Friday 12:45 PM - 8:00 PM
Saturday and Sundays 8:15 AM - 3:00 PM
Federal Holidays 8:15 AM - 3:00 PM

Visiting hours for the detention center are on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays from 8:30a.m. to 3:00p.m.

Three (3) adults are allowed to visit and no more than five total visitors are allowed at one time.

Getting on the Approved Visit List

Authorized visitors who can visit an inmate include family, friends, and associates. You can't visit an inmate unless he puts you on the visiting list.

Everyone must fill out a visitor form, and they must have a relationship with the inmate prior to incarceration. If a potential visitor does not have a prior relationship with the inmate, their request will be reviewed by the warden.

Once the inmate requests to add someone to their visit list, a correctional counselor will provide them with a visiting form, and the inmate is responsible for mailing these out and letting the potential visitor know that they need to fill out the form and return it to the institution staff.

The unit team will do a background check and determine if a visitor application is approved. They make their decision based on constructive and security factors. The process takes about a week, and the unit staff will notify the inmate when the requested visitor is approved or refused.

It is the inmate’s responsibility to notify the visitor of the decision, and the process is the same for both adult and minor visitors.

Basic Visit Procedures and Rules

If you are 16 years of age or older, you must bring a valid photo ID with you to the visit, like a state or federal ID card, driver's license, or current passport. Birth certificates are not valid forms of ID.

All visitors are subject to a visual and pat search by an officer. You will also be scanned by a metal detector.

Any item you bring into the facility will be opened and searched by a staff member, and anyone who refuses a search of themselves or their property will not be allowed to visit with the inmate.

Visitors may bring the following items into the institution:

• $20.00 in coins, ones or five dollar bills for vending machines
• Small clear change purse
• Keys
• Coat
• life-sustaining equipment
•  identification

Visitors with infants may carry in one small transparent diaper bag to carry the below approved items:

• one change of infant clothing
• Four extra diapers
• Baby wipes
• Two clear plastic bottles with formula
• Infant food which will be placed into a plastic container in front of the front lobby officer

Glass containers are not allowed in the visiting room

Visitors are not authorized to bring any item into the institution to give to an inmate. Lockers are not available to visitors for the storage of personal items not allowed in the institution. These items must be returned to the inmate visitor's personal vehicle.

The following items are not permitted in the Visiting Room:

• Handbags (Purses)
• Wallets
• Toys
• Food/Candy/Gum
• Umbrellas
• Infant Carriers
• Lotion
• Paperwork
• Lipstick/Chapstick
• Packages
• Newspapers
• Greeting Cards
• Magazines
• Photographs
• Baby Strollers
• Pagers
• Cellular Phones
• Tobacco Products

Visitors should dress within the bounds of good taste and should not wear clothing which would offend others who may be present in the visiting room.

The following clothing items cannot be worn into the visiting room:

• Tight clothing
• Transparent clothing
• Spandex clothing
• Tank tops
• Halter tops/sleeveless shirts
• Holes in clothing
• Plunging necklines
•  Wrap-around skirts
• Hooded shirts/sweatshirts
• Khaki colored pants or shirts
• Camouflage, or Athletic Wear
• Hats or caps (May I thru October 31)
• Opened toed shoes, sandals, flip-flops. It is necessary for all visitors to wear proper shoes
• Shorts that are more than one inch above the knee.
• Skirts that are not touching the top of knee when standing.
• No attire with questionable wording, i.e., gang affiliation, profanity, etc
• No shirts that hang less than 3 inches below the belt line.
• Jackets, coats, or sweaters will only be allowed during the months of November 1 through April 30.

Children under the age of six will be allowed to wear shorts, open toe shoes, sandals, or flip flops.

At the discretion of the Operations Lieutenant or IDO, other clothing resembling the style or color of inmate clothing (i.e., khaki, white, gray or camouflage in color clothing), may not be allowed to be worn into the institution.

There is no limit on the amount of mail that inmates receive, but all correspondence must have the inmate’s complete name, registration number, facility name, and address.

You can only send cards or letters to these addresses. Paperback books, newspapers, and magazines must come directly from the publisher via a subscription or mail order.

Inmates cannot receive packages through the mail, with the exception of a package of release day clothing. You can't send the release day package until 30 days prior to the scheduled release date.

How to Call an Inmate

Federal inmates are not allowed to have cellphones and they can't receive inbound calls. They can make outbound calls during approved hours, and they must pay for them with the money that is on their personal account or call collect.

Inmates will use TRULINCS to call to both landline and cell phones. This is also how inmates are able to send and receive emails. Your number must be added to the contact list for approval.

All phone calls are limited to 15 minutes, and will be monitored and recorded.

How to Send Money

Sending money is one of most important things you can do for an inmate. The prison will issue each prisoner the minimum amount of clothing and hygiene items, and provide them with three meals a day. But, it is extremely difficult for prisoners to have any level of comfort when living with just the items that are prison-issued.

Inmates can receive outside funds while incarcerated at a BOP-managed facility, which are deposited into their commissary accounts.

Postal Service

For federal prisoners, you can send money through the United States Postal Service by MONEY ORDER to the following address:

Federal Bureau of Prisons
Inmate Name
Eight-Digit Register Number
Post Office Box 474701
Des Moines, Iowa 50947-0001

Send the funds to the address above. Replace the second line with the inmate's valid, full committed name. Replace the third line with the inmate's eight digit register number.

Never send money directly to the prison. If you are using the postal service, you must always send your money order to the bureau of prisons using the above address.

MoneyGram

You can send an inmate funds electronically using MoneyGram's Express Payment Program.To send funds using this method, please read and follow these steps carefully:

• Wait until an inmate has physically arrived at FCI Milan.
• Gather the information you'll need. Which includes the inmate’s name and number.
• Visit moneygram.com to complete your payment.

Information needed to complete MoneyGram payment:

• Account Number: Inmate's eight-digit register number with no spaces or dashes, followed immediately by the inmate's last name (example: 12345678DOE).
• Company Name: Federal Bureau of Prisons
• City & State: Washington, DC
• Receive Code is always: 7932
• Beneficiary: Inmate's full committed name

Western Union

If you would like to see a sample Western Union form click here. On their website, they have a special form for sending money to inmates, and you go directly to it by clicking here.

You will need to know the inmate’s full name and number, and you can pay with a debit or credit card at westernunion.com. Remember, any time you send money to an inmate you must always include their name and registration number on everything.

There are a few things that inmates can spend their money on. This includes phone calls, emails, and commissary.  The commissary is the prison store, where inmates can buy things like beverages, meals and snacks, OTC medications, stationary, personal hygiene items, clothing, or other miscellaneous products.

Please be aware that prisoners have their own economy inside the prison walls just like we do in the real world. Inmates that have a lot of money can do a lot of things both legal and illegal. Prisoners can potentially use the money in their account to buy things for other inmates in exchange for drugs and paraphernalia. This activity is illegal and can get an inmate in a lot of trouble.

Is important to keep track of how much money you are sending your incarcerated loved one, and watch out for any suspicious behavior.

​Programs For ​Inmates

• Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP)
• Non-Residential Drug Abuse Program (NR-DAP)
• Drug Education Class
• Alcoholics Anonymous
• Narcotics Anonymous
• English as a Second Language (ESL)
• GED
• High School Diploma
• Advanced occupational education in Automotive Service Technician, Janitorial Maintenance, National Federation of Professional Trainers (NFPT), and Parks & Rec
• Apprenticeships in Carpentry, Computer Operator, Dental Assistant, Electrician, HVAC, Millwright, Pipefitter, Plumber, Quality Assurance, Stationary Engineer, Tool & Die, Welding
• UNICOR facility in the Metal Specialty Plant. There is also a pre-industrial training program for inmates waiting to get hired in the plant

Pictures of Federal Correctional Institution - Milan

Careers at Federal Correctional Institution - Milan

If you are interested in pursuing a career with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, you can find available positions at FCI Milan by visiting USAJobs.gov. The salaries at the facility begin around $40,000 and can go up into the six-figure range, depending on the position.

Reviews from employees at FCI Milan report that it is a high-stress work environment, but a job there is still very rewarding. There is never a shortage of hours, and the salary and benefits are considered to be the best part of the job - with the camaraderie of the co-workers being a close second.