Nellis Prison Camp was a United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 federal minimum-security prison

Prison

A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...

, also known as a Federal Prison Camp (FPC), located on Nellis Air Force Base

Nellis Air Force Base

Nellis Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base, located approximately northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. It is under the jurisdiction of Air Combat Command .-Overview:...

 in the state of Nevada

Nevada

Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

. The camp was operational between 1989 and 2006. Notable former inmates include Peter Bacanovic who was convicted along with Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart is an American business magnate, author, magazine publisher, and television personality. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she has gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, and merchandising...

 of various crimes in the ImClone scandal, and Larry Jay Levine

Larry Jay Levine

Larry Jay Levine is an American federal prison consultant. In October, 2006, Larry Levine founded American Prison Consultants, a legal services firm that provides information and federal criminal litigation assistance to offenders going through criminal proceedings in U.S...

founder of Wall Street Prison Consultants.

History

The prison opened in 1991 to provide a labor force for the air force base.

After 9/11, security at Nellis was beefed up considerably. The government did not want federal prisoners and their visitors in such a secure area and
the prison was closed in 2006.

Inmate labor

Inmates, who dress in tan shirts and pants, may participate in a work program on Nellis AFB. The inmates typically perform janitorial services, cleaning floors, restrooms, and emptying trash from office buildings around the base. They also perform groundskeeping, and clean the base bowling alley. Each workcenter that uses inmate labor must assign an NCO or officer to monitor and direct the work throughout the day. These monitors receive a card after training (a video and lecture given by the correctional officers). The card authorizes monitors to transport the prisoners with them each morning (most weekdays) to their workcenters. Inmates are not allowed to leave the base to perform work. Inmates often say the work relieves the boredom they would otherwise face at the prison camp. The program saves taxpayers money that would otherwise be spent on contracted services or longer/less productive work hours by military personnel.