News

A look inside the 'cushy' federal prison Michael Cohen wants to go to

OTISVILLE, N.Y. — Otisville Federal Correction Institution is called "a castle behind bars," and it could be where President Donald Trump's former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, serves his prison sentence.

From the outside, the Federal Correction Institution at Otisville has all the markings one might expect to see at a prison. There is barbed wire and guard towers, but there's a reason why Forbes Magazine once ranked Otisville as one of America's 10 cushiest prisons.

TRENDING NOW:

Bernie Madoff wanted to go to Otisville. Disgraced Imclone founder, Sam Waksal, did spend time there. It's the prison where fictional character, Gordon Gekko, played by Michael Douglas, did his time for white-collar crimes in the 2010 film, "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps."

Prison experts say it's a "club fed" if there ever was one, Larry Levine described it, "Like a boys' camp. It's like a kid when you're going to summer camp. They don't lock the doors, there's no fences there. You know, the inmates are really ... killing time is what it comes down to."

If Michael Cohen gets his way, it's where he would like to serve out his three-year sentence for, among other things, campaign finance violations. If approved, Cohen will leave his posh Park Avenue apartment in Manhattan and head about 70 miles northwest to Otisville, New York, where the medium-security institution is located.

According to its website, Otisville houses 840 inmates. That's considered pretty small by prison standards. It includes a detention center and a minimum-security satellite camp, which is where legal experts say white-collar, first-time offenders such as Cohen usually end up.

"It's dorm-style living like you're going to college. The activities that are available are, are almost too numerous to count. There's two libraries. There's a leisure library and the law library. You also have many, many sports activities," said Frank Riccio. Cohen would be free to spend his day playing tennis or bocce ball.

Waksal once said his time spent there felt like "a bad sleepaway camp in the Catskills." But Riccio says the food isn't dining hall chow, "The food, as I understand, is also not that bad either. If you like diner food, then you're going to like the food at Otisville. It's not what is commonly referred to as prison food."

A check of the commissary menu shows choices of: herbal tea, turkey bacon, raw almonds - in case dry roasted are not to one's liking - and because it's close to New York with its large Jewish population, there are kosher options, like matzo ball soup and gefilte fish. "There's actually a rabbi at the prison facility to administer the Jewish faith," said Art Roderick.

A judge has recommended that Cohen be sent to Otisville, but it's up to the Federal Bureau of Prisons to decide where inmates serve their time.

 

CNN

Most Read