Call the jail authorities at 718-840-4200 for queries and requests. will be afforded to prepare legal documents while incarcerated. With regard to the numbers as of January 25, 2022, for MDC1: His organisation, a federal prison consulting firm, represents inmates in all 209 federal prisons across the United States, including MDC which is where Ms Maxwell, 58, is expected to remain until her trial in July next year after a federal judge denied her bail this week. A-Z. In the middle of New York City, they had been cut off from the world. Additionally, the Warden may restrict or cancel visiting for the sake of safety and Director Robert S. Mueller III, brought by eight, mostly Muslim immigrant detainees, was allowed to go forward by a three-judge federal panel. To impress their visitors, some inmates ironed their jump suits and put creases in the pant legs. Power was restored after a week, on Feb . The process takes about a week, and the unit staff will notify the inmate when the requested visitor is approved or refused. Booked in after being transferred from the 9th precinct. Mr. Daughtry, who was being held on charges of violating supervised release, said he had been denied antibiotics and Tylenol by jail staff. It was just unbearable, he said. As a result, an inmate's release date may not be up-to-date. The jails computers, used to request prescription refills, were down, along with the monitored phone system inmates use to call family. On February 5, 2013, New York media outlets reported that Nancy Gonzalez, a former federal correction officer, had engaged in a sexual relationship with Ronell Wilson, an inmate at MDC Brooklyn, and that Gonzalez was carrying Wilson's child. Thats the only way we can improve. Federal Correctional Officer Convicted of Repeatedly Raping Female Inmate Carlos Martinez, a Lieutenant at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, Threatened Victim with Solitary Confinement and More Jail Time if She Reported the Attacks The Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), a federal jail in Sunset Park, isolated entire inmate units together regardless of some testing positive for COVID-19, resulting in hundreds of inmates getting sick, a Team 12 Investigation found. The Brooklyn jailhouse is expected to add 159 beds under the most recent plan down from an initial proposal to increase capacity by more than 600 beds. At the time, the federal Bureau of Prisons, which runs the MDC, emailed the New York Times insisting that Cells have heat and hot water, there is lighting in the common areas and inmates are receiving hot meals., Inmates contested this account and protested the lack of heat and light as well by taking part in hunger strikes, barricading their cell doors, and engaging in small acts of resistance like eating in forbidden areas. They make their decision based on constructive and security factors. The sessions are as follows: Sunday: Male Cadreif(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'prisoninsight_com-large-leaderboard-2','ezslot_3',135,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-prisoninsight_com-large-leaderboard-2-0'); Authorized visitors who can visit an inmate include family, friends, and associates. The only way that our website will be able to complete its goal of holding correctional institutions accountable for their actions is to collect reviews from our website visitors. [22][23] Inmates, family members and lawyers have said that those inmates involved in protesting these harsh conditions through non-violent disobedience and hunger strikes have faced draconian reprisals from jail staff, including being pepper sprayed, subjected to solitary confinement and having toilets shut off. It is run by the Federal Bureau of Prisons and holds male and female federal offenders. After the fire, Mr. Quay failed to set up an emergency command center or give staff instructions other than to keep inmates locked up, union officials said in interviews. institution life. [25], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}403937N 740016W / 40.66028N 74.00444W / 40.66028; -74.00444. You will need to bring photo identification into the institution with you. The building renovated in 2012 and closed in December 2020 is filled with an extensive series of individual cells essentially the size of large closets with low ceilings. Use the following address when shipping freight & non-USPS parcels: Use the following address when sending correspondence and parcels to staff: Learn general information about the institution, programs, rules, and regulations Instead of bars on the doors, there is a small slot that allows guards to slide food through three times per day. The family of an inmate who died after being pepper-sprayed is blaming his death on Brooklyn . He is serving a 150-year sentence. Which includes the inmates name and number.Visit moneygram.com to complete your payment. Each has metal toilets right next to the beds, small sinks and desk ledges. In his report, Venters said detainees sick calls were often ignored, and when they were answered, officials typically only conducted a temperature check. They are not letting people go.. Baptist minister, political activist and current, Anti-nuclear activist and Roman Catholic nun; convicted in 2013 of, Serving a sentence of three years. Become a full-fledged member of the Brooklyn Magazine family. He expresses how there is an aroma coming from the toilets, she said. MDC Brooklyn Facility Type Federal Prison Address 80 29TH STREET BROOKLYN, NY, 11232 Phone 718-840-4200 Email BRO/ ExecAssistant@bop.gov Capacity 1730 Date Established 1994 Offender Gender Male and Female Offenders Security Level Administrative BOP Region Northeast Region Judicial District Eastern New York City Brooklyn Postal Code 11232 State [1/2] The Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), which is operated by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons, is pictured, as the global outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in . This covers the basic fundamentals that apply to all of our At MDC, all cells are put into pods, or groupings, within the facility. You can opt out at any time. The Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) where Ghislaine Maxwell, the alleged accomplice of the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, has been moved to according to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons, is pictured in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, New York, U.S., July 6, 2020. Chaos-plagued Rikers Island is slated to be replaced by a series of smaller jails in every borough, except Staten Island, by 2027 as part of a $8.3 billion de Blasio administration plan. RMSC was named after an original member of the New York City Board of Correction. Gonzalez pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual abuse of a ward on July 3, 2013. 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. The primary mission of the Metropolitan Detention Center is to house adult male and female federal detainees from the New York City metropolitan area. Your email address will not be published. I never saw anything like that, said Mr. Lindsay, who now works as an expert witness. It was built to hold 1,000 inmates awaiting arraignment or trial at the federal court in the Eastern District of New York. Iowa. Ms Maxwells cushy life of private jets, and interacting with the worlds elite including the likes of Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, and Melania Trump is no more within MDC. Maxwell, who is under a 14-day coronavirus lockdown, now counts herself among the jail's other rich and. They want to make sure shell stand trial, the source said. Hundreds of inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn spent the coldest days of the year locked in cells, largely without heat and hot water. The 1,600-inmate prison, which houses both male and female inmates, is divided into four security levels depending on the prisonerss crimes: minimum, low, medium and high. I feel like that is something that around this time should at least work, she said, adding that the poor ventilation in her husbands cell is leading him to have difficulty breathing. More recently, an investigation focused on officers who sexually assaulted female inmates who were on overnight cleaning duty between 2013 and 2016. The financier was held at the Metropolitan Correctional Centre in Lower Manhattan in July 2019 while awaiting his trial. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. You can search for any inmate that is currently serving time in the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) - Brooklyn by: Visit the official website for the county jail and tap on the lookup link. Social visits are scheduled to occur weekday afternoons (including those falling on federal holidays) from 12:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m., evenings from 5:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m., and weekends from 8:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. An inmate alternates between afternoon and evening visiting each month based on the 5th digit of their register number. At the very least, he said, there should have been extra blankets. In 1985, the Department's first nursery was born, featuring a 25-bed baby nursery. He had a raging infection, his lawyer, Gary G. Becker, said later, after Mr. Daughtry was removed to a hospital. 2:38 PM EDT, Wed August 14, 2019. 80 29TH STREETBROOKLYN, NY 11232Driving Directions:https://goo.gl/maps/KSXDYSjKvVR2, Phone: 718-840-4200Email: BRO/[emailprotected], INMATE NAME & REGISTER NUMBERMDC BROOKLYNMETROPOLITAN DETENTION CENTERP.O. Manage Settings The heating problems appeared to be at least partly unrelated to the electrical ones: on Jan. 21, some heating coils that draw water from the boilers had frozen in a cold snap and broke. Union officials also called the warden. The day rooms Wagner and the approximately 200 dignitaries hailed at the opening ceremony are only big enough for a few small tables and most lack air conditioning. In a 15-page ruling that approved the compassionate release of an inmate suffering from HIV and obesity, federal judge Katherine Polk Failla called conditions at the MDC brutal referencing frequent lockdowns for lengthy periods of time, no programs, extremely limited recreation, [and] no social visits. This release came 10 months after Jamel Floyd died from being pepper sprayed in the face by a prison guard. 2023 Cable News Network. We're sorry, but we don't have any insights for this institution at this time. An 18-year veteran of the Bureau of Prisons, the counselor was forced to take a medical retirement as a result of his injuries.[12]. Aimee Jamison, who was a case worker at McCreary, a federal prison in Kentucky, while Mr. Quay was an associate warden there, described him as a conscientious manager. They were wrapped in everything they had, and they had tried to cover the windows.. In 2019, one former warden, Cameron Lindsay said that "The M.D.C. was one of the most troubled, if not the most troubled facility in the Bureau of Prisons. Last year, another inspector general report condemned conditions for women housed in an adjacent building. And [Maxwells] life is going to basically be hell there.. [1] As of April 2022, 1,712 prisoners are held in MDC Brooklyn. Funds deposited by This might include work in Food Service, as a unit orderly, or in a maintenance. Prison officials at MDC and BOP will decide how to house Ms Maxwell to make sure they dont face another Epstein situation. If this is accurate where they havent had heat for days on end in 20 years in the B.O.P. On July 19, 2013, he was sentenced to an additional 12 years in prison in connection with the assault. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice . This week, federal officials moved former R&B superstar R. Kelly from a detention center in his hometown of Chicago to the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Sunset Park Brooklyn. Ghislaine Maxwell has been denied bail on five separate occasions and R. Kelly was denied bail in early 2019. The blackout, which lasted for a week, ended Feb. 3, when power was restored amid public outcry. Published GitHub export from English Wikipedia. Information needed to complete the 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 PrisonsCity & State: Washington, DCReceive Code is always: 7932Beneficiary: Inmate's full committed name. The Commissary provides a bank type She is going to be treated by some people as a person thats very famous. He tried to block it with a book cover. Skirts, dresses, or shorts must be no shorter than three inches above the knee. Ghislaine Maxwell was forced to swap her luxurious, secluded, New Hampshire estate for a small cell in Brooklyns notorious federal prison when she was arrested as an alleged accomplice to sex predator Jeffrey Epstein and the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) has quite a reputation. After more than a week without heat and power, conditions at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn showed signs of improvement on Sunday evening. Hailing from the great state of Massachusetts, reporter Jessica Parks made her way to Brooklyn Paper after covering Nassau County politics and the Port Washington area for newspapers in western Long Island. Stephen Nessen/WNYC. Rose M. Singer Center (RMSC) Opened in June 1988, RMSC is a 800-bed facility for female detainees and sentenced women in custody. Mr. Quay did not respond to requests for comment. That is a crushing experience.. [24], Hernndez is charged with three counts: But, it is extremely difficult for prisoners to have any level of comfort when living with just the items that are prison-issued. Ghislaine Maxwell, the woman arrested last week in connection to the Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking case, is awaiting her July 14 court date in a notoriously tough Brooklyn detention facility. Hes a straight-up guy, and hes not going to go to overlook the health and welfare of anyone, inmates or staff, Ms. Jamison said. In my opinion, its not one of the best federal prisons around and a lot of guard-related incidents occur, Mr Frantz added. (3) conspiring to use and carry machine guns and destructive devices during, and to possess machine guns and destructive devices in furtherance of, the cocaine importation conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. The lawyers asked the warden to move the inmates or bring in blankets, but said they received only dismissive replies. The Metropolitan Correctional Center has housed a slew of well-known criminals El Chapo, John Gotti, Bernie Madoff and some of the world's most dangerous terrorists. High-profile inmates include singer R Kelly and Pharma bro Martin Shkreli, both of whom were transferred elsewhere, as well as Donald Trumps former lawyer Michael Cohen, who was put back into federal custody last week after breaking house arrest. After confirming by checking the box below and inputting your email address, please press "submit" and then click on "View Insights" for the area you'd like to reveal. I had no idea what time, what day you lost track of everything, the man, who asked that his name not be used for fear of reprisals, said in a phone interview. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice. At one point some protestors tried to break into the prison shouting Heat is a human right! with one crying out Thats my son! When they let everybody out for the 30 minutes, everybody is congregating, everybody is talking.. February 27, 2023 . According to a report in The Intercept: On all three of those housing units where men collectively refused food, jail staff shut off the valves to the toilets in all of the cells, according to accounts relayed to lawyers. Due to the First Step Act, sentences are being reviewed and recalculated to address pending Federal Time Credit changes. - Click to download. Reports of misconduct in the jail have continued as an inmate died after prison staff sprayed him . Now, American Oversight, a nonpartisan organization, is suing for records regarding that week-long outage. The length of your visit and the specific times you can visit will depend on if you are visiting a female or male offender, and what their detainment status is. marcy correctional facility famous inmates. The most prominent critic of these conditions is current inmate Ghislaine Maxwell who is awaiting trial on allegations that she procured and trafficked underage girls to be abused and raped by multi-millionaire Jeffery Epstein and his friends. It was the end of January, and hundreds of inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn had been locked in their cells after an electrical fire knocked out power in the building. The CDC has identified basic guidelines for infection control and overall COVID19 response in detention settings, many of which the MDC appears to have ignored, Venters wrote in his April 30 report. In common areas, the temperature was bearable, but as she approached cells that faced the waterfront on one floor, she said, she was hit by a gust of cold air. A problematic electrical panel was repaired but caught fire the next day. The bureau looks at things in its own way, she said. Photo / US DOJ. There is no social distancing, Cooper said. THE CITY toured the old jail and found eerie signs of the building's 65-year history of holding countless detainees. During the long week when the jail remained in perpetual twilight, correction officers worked late preparing makeshift meals sandwiches, cereal that they took from cell to cell, said Mr. Sanon. Please read the BRO Legal Notice Document for legal visitors. information by refering to this Convicted terrorist Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 1998 bombings of two US Embassies in East Africa. This Jefferson County Montana Most Wanted List posts the top 50-100 fugitive criminals on the run. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. But the next weekend, on Jan. 27, a faltering electrical panel exploded, he said. The Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn (MDC Brooklyn) is a United States federal administrative detention facility in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. 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. Visitors under the age of sixteen must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. I dont think it is well run at all. The Intercept reported that guards and prison officials responded to these protests by repeatedly pepper spraying inmates, throwing offenders in solitary confinement, withholding meals from certain prisoners, and shutting off toilets in the cells of inmates on hunger strikes in order to flood the freezing and dark cells with feces and sewage. As a wanted terrorist, he was housed in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, before being transferred to the facility in Manhattan. You got to let me go! before being repelled by prison guards employing pepper spray. The inmates were very agitated, very angry, said Anthony Sanon, the head of the local chapter of the correction officers union. Sentenced in 2021 to 3 years' imprisonment, now at, Asaro is New York City mobster and capo in the, Serving a sentence for drug possession and robbery bought to New York to stand trial, Awaiting Trial, Co-Defendant of Ronald Washington. Since imposing confinement, prison officials have canceled the routine maintenance of cells altogether, forcing inmates to live in unsanitary conditions, said the current inmates wife. [11], On June 29, 2009, Ronald Atkinson (62416-054), an inmate at MDC Brooklyn who had been arrested in connection with six bank robberies twelve days earlier, committed an allegedly unprovoked assault on a correctional officer, punching him in the head multiple times until he was restrained by correctional officers. There are a few things that inmates can spend their money on. It holds male and female prisoners of all security levels. Men pounded on cell doors. No matter what happens on the outside, we still go to work, and our job is to contain the inmates, no matter what.. BROOKLYN (CN) The judge overseeing a mediation over conditions at a Brooklyn jail said the parties must work quickly to adjust to the news that the facility will absorb hundreds of detainees as early as October, when the Manhattan detention center where Jeffrey Epstein died is scheduled to close.. Chief U.S. District Judge Margo K. Brodie in Brooklyn said she learned Thursday morning that . If you would like to see a sample Western Union form click here. He was, Convicted terrorist Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 1998 bombings of two US Embassies in East Africa. I dont know whats going on here, the guard had told him, But this is inhumane.. After Representative Jerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat who heads the House Judiciary Committee, toured the jail during the blackout, he denounced not only the deplorable conditions, but an absolute lack of urgency or caring by the leadership, particularly the warden., Something weird is going on, an inmate, Kaemar Wilson, said to his fiance in a message in mid-January. Contact Us. Last December, the detention center also came under fire when a power outage forced 1,600 inmates to bear below-freezing temperatures for an entire week. The prison made headlines earlier this month when 35-year-old inmate Jamel Floyd died after corrections officers pepper-sprayed him in the face sparking a string of protests outside of the facility, coinciding with other demonstrations against police brutality. Families began to call the jail. Approved social visitors may visit cadre inmates for the duration of 8:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. on each day designated for cadre unit visiting, space permitting. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. But other women, disturbed by the alleged crimes against Ms Maxwell regarding young girls, could target the former British socialite. On their website, they have a special form for sending money to inmates, and you go directly to it by clicking here. Sorry, there are no insights for this section of the facility yet. Modified visiting information related to COVID-19. Maxwells lawyers have said that their client is living in a cell with a constant pervasive stench of sewage and with vermin droppings falling from the air vents. The jaw-droppingly appalling conditions, in which Maxwell is living are inhuman, cruel, and degrading, and her family has argued that they are in breach the United Nations standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners. Additionally, any questions or comments regarding the discrepancies or inaccuracies found within this report should be directed to PAOA at (713) 818-9098, or to the subcontracted independent auditor (name and email address can be found on page one of the report), for explanation and resolution. Emergency generators . Top NYPD official tells businesses to demand patrons remove masks in order to enter, Man sentenced to 20 years in prison for 2018 rape near Prospect Park: DA, Two-alarm blaze rips through Brooklyn apartment building, Rats, trash, dogs, oh my! Please note that by checking the box below, you understand we will be contacting you via email to better understand how we can help you and where our data will be used. your family, friends, or other sources are stored in your commissary account that Mr. Sanon alerted regional union leaders. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much 2. Atkinson is scheduled for release in 2031. Its Cold as Hell: Inside a Brooklyn Jails Weeklong Collapse, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/09/nyregion/brooklyn-jail-no-heat-inmates.html. Electric panels used to lock cells were torn out after the jail closed. With its demolition pending, heres what could be a last public glimpse inside the Brooklyn House of Detention: A hallway in the housing area. (2) using and carrying machine guns and destructive devices during, and possessing machine guns and destructive devices in furtherance of, the cocaine importation conspiracy, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years and a maximum sentence of life in prison; and Solitary confinement includes a small cell with only a toilet, sink, and bed. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. During the episode, which drew national attention to the treatment of inmates in federal jails, lawmakers demanded more answers from officials. Gonzalez was terminated and arraigned in federal court on charges of sexual abuse of a person in custody, because an inmate cannot legally consent to sex. Maxwell was transferred to the Metropolitan Detention Center on Monday, following her arrest in New Hampshire. that you will encounter The prison made headlines earlier this month when, died after corrections officers pepper-sprayed him in the face sparking, a string of protests outside of the facility. The prison will issue each prisoner the minimum amount of clothing and hygiene items, and provide them with three meals a day. METROPOLITAN DETENTION CENTER P.O. recommended that you call the facility to confirm the visiting schedule This includes phone calls, emails, and commissary. Protestors returned in the summer of 2020, when Jamel Floyd, a 35 year old prisoner, died after being pepper sprayed by a guard, and in December of the same year in response to skyrocketing Covid cases in the prison. previously has investigated M.D.C. and issued harshly critical reports, said Ms. von Dornum, the federal defender. Still, he worried more about his cellmate, who suffers seizures and was not given his usual medication. The . The unit team will do a background check and determine if a visitor application is approved. Business Services. Day and night, 24 hours a day, you are in that pod. New York City Councilman Justin Brannan filmed the scene on Friday at the waterfront Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where more than 1,600 inmates are imprisoned. We Is important to keep track of how much money you are sending your incarcerated loved one, and watch out for any suspicious behavior. AFP via Getty Images. Inmates cannot receive packages through the mail, with the exception of a package of release day clothing. clicking here. List of New York state prisons Nationwide Criminal Records Search How do you search out why someone is in Jail or Prison? Inmates can receive outside funds while incarcerated at a BOP-managed facility, which are deposited into their commissary accounts.Postal Service. Prisoners can potentially use the money in their account to buy things for other inmates in exchange for drugs and paraphernalia. Inmates are housed in traditional cells with two or more bunks. He was told to wash the wound with soap and water. On Wednesday, the family of a former inmate who died in the jail after being pepper-sprayed by guards filed suit against the US government and unnamed guards, claiming they did nothing as he. Earlier today, Eugenio Perez was sentenced before Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New York to 25 years' imprisonment following his convictions on six counts of deprivation of civil rights under color of law, four counts of aggravated sexual abuse, five counts of sexual abuse in a federal prison, six counts of sexual abuse of a ward, one count of attempted sexual . Cameron Lindsay, a former warden at the MDC, told Reuters that prison officials have to decide whether to house Ms Maxwell in her own 10ft by 12ft cell or live with another female prisoner. Hundreds of inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn spent the coldest days of the year locked in cells, largely without heat and hot water. Due to a series of circumstances, he was able to take his own life in his jail cell and was pronounced dead on 10 August. Shell have a lot of interactions with inmates, unless she is put into solitary, Mr Frantz said. of the institution administration. The interior of a cell shows some remnants of past occupants. Visitors are not permitted to wear overcoats, rain coats, parkas, winter coats, or puffy vests into the institution, Open toe shoes or sandals, and no wheeled shoes, Military without identification, khaki, tan, or beige clothing, Swimwear, tube tops, midriffs, or low cut (revealing) clothing, Lycra or spandex or tight fitting clothing to include yoga pants and jeggings. [4] There was large opposition from members of the local community, who feared that traffic congestion in the area would rise. This report, posted on October 27, 2022, as required per 28 CFR 115.403, details the findings of an audit that was conducted by an outside contractor to determine the Federal Bureau of Prisons? In court papers, lawyers for the Bureau of Prisons argued the lawsuit applies only to a handful of inmates who allegedly suffered during the blackout. MDC has also faced problems recently with inmates testing positive for the coronavirus. Online Services. Now, sources claim that inmates have been subjected to incredible conditions inside the facility where staff force detainees into near-constant confinement to their cells, and have provided a troubling lack of medical response to the virus. In 1999, a second facility was opened adjacent to the original complex to house inmates who have already been sentenced and are awaiting transfer to a permanent facility. For years, jail officials blocked the public from seeing much beyond the visiting room on the first floor, citing security concerns.