Advocates for Criminal Justice Reform in Utah
The Utah Prisoner Advocate Network is a 501(c)3 nonprofit and 100% volunteer grassroots community outreach organization that aims to simplify the incarceration process for the inmates’ supporters—while also advocating for better conditions inside Utah jails and prisons. We do this primarily by educating the public through monthly support meetings and newsletters, an open dialogue with the Utah Department of Corrections / county jail administrations, legislative advocacy, guest speakers, coalition forming, and a shared network of useful resources. Instead of membership, our network constituents are formed by volunteers, criminal justice advocates, industry professionals, expert advisors, coalition organizations, formerly incarcerated individuals, and over 1,000 Utah families of the incarcerated and growing.Our Mission Our Organizers Media Inquiries
Join the UPAN Family Support Group on Facebook
We’ve formed a private family support group as a safe place to ask questions, get advice and emotional support from people that know what you’re going through.
- Invaluable resource for those who are new to the criminal justice system in Utah
- Network with UPAN Directors, advocates, and other families of incarcerated loved ones
- Ask questions and get advice
- Moral support from others who’ve experienced the same type of issues and situations
- Formerly incarcerated individuals trying to get back on their feet and looking for resources
- Discussions on criminal justice reform issues
- News, updates, and much more
Join Our Support Group
Join Our UPAN Volunteers / Committees Working Group
Latest News
Congrats to the Life Skills graduates! ... See MoreSee Less
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Why don’t you guys just get that prison in order instead of fucking getting on Facebook and everywhere telling are you doing all this good stuff for all these in means when you guys are bunch of crooks
NEW: 47% of people in state prisons are parents of minor children, leaving 1.25 kids coping with the fallout of mass incarceration. Meanwhile, 1/3 of people in state prisons had an incarcerated parent of their own. Learn more in the Prison Policy Initiative’s new report: www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2022/08/11/parental_incarceration/NEW: 47% of people in state prisons are parents of minor children, leaving 1.25 kids coping with the fallout of mass incarceration.
Meanwhile, 1/3 of people in state prisons had an incarcerated parent of their own.
Learn more in our new report: www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2022/08/11/parental_incarceration/
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The end of a really tough 1st month for incarcerated at the new prison!
To the UPAN prison family:
This journey is very difficult. For all of us inside and out it is the hardest thing most of us have ever done.
So to our Prison family, we appreciate information.
It is really important to share the information that we get and then we each can try to verify - and all of us may do that in different ways.
Some people may react out of fear and others out of curiosity to new news of changes.
Some people have loved ones incarcerated in the housing units in question about whatever the topic is that they can ask.
And other people have time to research on the Corrections website or look through old Facebook posts or Google various information.
The biggest challenge is our fear of uncertainty.
And I think everybody on this group tries to be open and honest and supportive but sometimes people just interpret things differently than the writer intended and sometimes some people explain things in a way that certain people get confused and nobody can take anything personally, I hope.
Everyone is doing the best they can with what they have and that is all that matters.

Please remember that we can’t do anything with what we don’t know so at least these posts can be starting places! Sometimes they have very specific answers snd guidance. That is what the UPAN Facebook family group is for. 
So with many posts we get a starting place to learn more and if people misunderstand or if a post is maybe not worded perfectly we can just work to be flexible and move forward and update each other and uplift each other.
So sending hugs to this great big prison family.
This has been a really tough month with this SLC Prison move.
I do not even have my own loved one in this prison system anymore (he’s in another one). And this past month has been pure exhausting hell on me learning of all the inadequacies and lack of preparedness and people not getting fed and people not getting meds etc. etc. and it breaks my heart.
All I can say is just hang in there and UPAN directors - and I know a lot of you on your own - are researching and doing what we can to inform Corrections of what needs to be looked at or corrected.
And sometimes we report the same problem but with different units or inmates over and over every day every week. And that is what it takes.
So have a good night to all of you and sending hugs. Molly
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Welcome back as we kick-off our post-summer break series! TONIGHT Monday, August 8th from 6:30 to 8:30 pm Mountain Time UPAN is pleased to welcome our Special Guest Dennis Wynn of the New Path Foundation to discuss release and re-entry issues.
We'll open up the last half hour of the conversation for open discussion on any topic participants would like to ask. Free and open to the public. We'll be recording and live streaming via Facebook Live at www.facebook.com/utahprisoner/live.
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Thanks for your comment Micaela, we'll pass that along.
Contact them at [email protected]
My husband is on the phone from Gunnison right now Gale section has definitely gotten smaller portions and yesterday they got moldy bread and meat.
My brother in-law has ordered last two weeks and has not got anything.
Food portions are definitely smaller.
New Utah State Prison and Inland Port August 27, 2020 by Dan Potts The new planned state prison and Inland Port will place prisoners and employees closer to the extensive wetlands and the mosquitoes they naturally produce. Attempting to control mosquitoes is likely to create some serious problems. These noxious biting insects are pesky, and they carry a variety of diseases including malaria, West Nile virus, Zika and dog heartworm. They kill far more people and their pets worldwide than COVID-19...https://utahstories.com/2020/08/new-utah-state-prison-and-inland-port/
stateofreform.com/featured/2022/08/utah-dhhs-advises-public-to-take-protective-measures-against-m...
www.corrections1.com/facility-design-and-operation/articles/officials-balk-at-cost-of-fighting-mo...
This doesn't help the people of rural areas
Absolutely agree with that
What? Medical is concerning
Yes do an audit on commissary!!
Do another audit on the prison
The state needs to
My husband in max said repeatedly not received half of his order and my brother in a different section of gunnison has a full bag
They moved way too soon to a prison not even close to ready
Gangland*
Gunnison**
Yes that's what my husband says. Gunner is turning into gangly
As far as commissary goes is there anything that can be done about ordering one thing and receiving something else ie ibuprofen 100 count and receiving 30 count?
Antelope low side section 1 is still ordering by phone and they are constantly out of stock of everything
In Gunnison
Gale is still ordering by phone and up to 2 years expired items
Welcome back
The UPAN Monthly Meeting is starting now, we hope you'll join us: ... See MoreSee Less
Join our Cloud HD Video Meeting
us06web.zoom.us
Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise video communications, with an easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars across mobile, desktop, and room systems. Zoom Rooms is the original software-based conference room solution used around the world in board, confer...Please Join Us TONIGHT for Our Next UPAN Monthly Meeting | Monday, August 8th at 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm MDT - mailchi.mp/utahprisoneradvocate/august-2022-legislators ... See MoreSee Less
Please Join Us TONIGHT for Our Next UPAN Monthly Meeting | Monday, August 8th at 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm MDT - mailchi.mp/utahprisoneradvocate/august-2022 ... See MoreSee Less
“I Was Trained to Call Men a Word They Hated”
by Kevin Byrd, as told to Adria Watson. “As correctional officers, we are conditioned to call prisoners ‘inmates.’ But at Sing Sing, where I worked for 25 years, that was as bad as calling them a snitch.”
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I Was Trained to Call Prisoners a Word They Hated
www.themarshallproject.org
As correctional officers, we are conditioned to call prisoners ‘inmates.’ But at Sing Sing, where I worked for 25 years, that was as bad as calling them a snitch.Please join us tonight at 6:30 PM MDT via Zoom for our monthly meeting. We welcome special guest Dennis Wynn from the New Path Foundation to discuss release and re-entry. We’ll also be available to answer your concerns about the new prison or any other general questions. Free and open to the public. Will be live-streamed and recorded via Facebook Live. We hope you’ll join us! ... See MoreSee Less
This content isn't available right now
When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.Letter: Shame on Lee and Romney for again voting against the “Burn Pit Bill” ... See MoreSee Less

Letter: Shame on Lee and Romney for again voting against the “Burn Pit Bill”
trib.al
We just learned that the United States Senate passed the PACT Act by an 86-ll roll call vote. Sens. Mike Lee and Mitt Romney were two of the nay votes. This the second time that they voted against what is commonly known as the “Burn Pit Bill.”Is anybody actually surprised? 🙄
Albert Woodfox, held in solitary confinement for 43 years, dies aged 75. Woodfox, member of ‘Angola Three’, was wrongfully convicted of 1972 murder of Louisiana prison guard and released only in 2016. ... See MoreSee Less

Albert Woodfox, held in solitary confinement for 43 years, dies aged 75
www.theguardian.com
Member of ‘Angola Three’ was wrongfully convicted of 1972 murder of Louisiana prison guard and released only in 2016