Original subtitles

[thunder rolling]

Go ahead and take your watch off.

- Do you have any cash on you? - No, sir, I do not.

I'm gonna have to give you a pair of flip-flops,

'cause they're steel toe, right?

I've never been in trouble before in my whole life.

This time, right here, is the very first time I've ever been incarcerated.

- Thank you, ma'am. - You're welcome.

I'm one of them...

although I'm not one of them.

Fuck.

The hardest part of the first day in jail is just coming to grips

with the reality that your liberty is no longer a privilege to you.

Everything stops for us in here.

Stuff running through your head, and you don't know when you'll get out again.

That first day coming in is a hit of reality.

[sobbing]

You know, it's just not a place to be. Jail is not a place to be, period.

Okay, turn around for me.

You okay? You need medical?

- My shoulder hurts. - Your shoulder hurts?

I've never been in trouble with the law before.

This is my first time being arrested.

You in a bad mood today? Don't be like that.

Okay, I need you to take your glasses off, please.

Look at camera number one, right here, ma'am.

[stifling laughter]

Ma'am, you're making me laugh 'cause you're so upset!

We're going to go ahead and put you in a uniform

so that you're not... nude.

When I was arrested I said to them, "Look, I don't have any clothes on."

And they pulled my arm behind me and cuffed me anyway.

And I gotta go to the bathroom.

She had to do a lot to hide the bald spots.

It doesn't matter what your situation is.

You're a criminal once you come through those doors.

[man] This your first time in jail?

- Yeah. - Welcome.

Oh, yeah, it's so good to be here... with you fine folks. Yeah.

First time ever arrested.

- Wow. - 46 years old.

Damn! Shit! All right, fool!

- No shit! Fuck! - [Benjamin] Appreciate it, yeah.

- I knew I'd meet some friends in here. - You want to meet a killer?

- Nice to meet you. Yeah. - How you doing?

If you want to meet someone who didn't pay their child support...

this guy.

[laughter]

I'm in here because I fell in love with the wrong woman.

We've only been divorced for about 18 months.

I've been able to pay child support for most of that 18 months.

But then just recently...

I can't.

I'm three months behind, so the judge said that I had to pay the $4,600,

and he gave me a 90-day timeframe to get that paid in,

and I... could not... get it done.

[female sheriff] Taylor, Benjamin.

- Stand in that yellow box for me. - Yes, ma'am.

- Are you currently working or in school? - I'm currently in between opportunities.

Employment opportunity, you like that?

[laughing]

You're in here on a failure to pay child support.

Your bond amount has to be in cash or a certified check of $4,629.24.

Go down to the exit door, make a right, and go around to number nine.

I sure as hell never thought that I'd be wondering how I was going to come up

with $4,600 to keep me out of jail.

I had a good career in the pest control field,

and I went from having, like, 40 or 50 grand in the bank

on a regular basis, for years and years and years, to having nothing.

How did I get here? I mean, look at this.

Look at this.

♪ Yeah, I'm a man on the edge Don't wanna push me ♪

♪ You better check where you step Don't wanna cross me, no ♪

♪ They try to wrest me down, but I'm the big man... ♪

Hell yeah, I've been waiting for this.

♪ My time is coming around and I've got big plans... ♪

[woman] Are you counting down the hours?

Uh, yeah, I've been counting down... for days now.

I'm in here for a violation of probation.

Original charge was a falsified police report.

You sure you don't want to take none of this stuff home, sir?

No. Look, this is all I'm going to the holding cell with.

The number for my high school buddy

and hopefully some free tickets to see Despicable Me 3.

Take the kid.

It's been definitely a roller coaster ever since, uh, me and my wife split up.

It kinda crushed me not being able to come home from work

and, like, having my son, you know, drop everything he's doing

to come run and give me a hug or whatever.

He's five. He'll be six in December.

It was like I lost everything, and drugs was the only thing

that was going to get me...

not necessarily happy, but like...

take away the pain.

But in the long run, it just... it screws me over every time.

I've been having dreams about the hallway on the release.

That long hallway. That long hallway.

I can even picture the carpet. It's, like, gray.

What's going through your mind just as you're counting down?

Uh, basically, my girlfriend.

Be happy to see her.

And the three-day getaway I'm about to take.

Hardiman, It's time.

Gonna go down to Florida.

Gonna take my girlfriend down there and hang out for the weekend.

And come back to work on Monday.

I work on cars.

Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I'm pretty good at what I do.

I can't tell you the last time I had a vacation,

so, definitely looking forward to it.

[walkie-talkies chattering]

[shouting]

I've been waiting to go home all day.

Been thinking about going home for, like, the last two weeks

because I've been in The Hole for two weeks.

The Hole, man, is something serious, bro.

It's a make you or break you type thing.

[male sheriff] Solitary confinement, also referred to as "The Hole",

is the worst form of punishment here.

Mouthing off to staff members, being disrespectful towards staff members,

can get an individual placed in solitary confinement.

We do not tolerate that behavior.

I got locked down in The Hole for being disrespectful...

and, uh, standing at the door.

Talking about some petty shit.

It's like you're trapped in a box. All you see is these four walls.

We eat in the cell, we sleep in the cell, we shit in the cell,

everything we do is in the cell.

That can drive a nigga crazy.

Yo, bro!

Hey, tell me when you see the deputy.

I get out today. This is my last day.

In The Hole?

No, my last day, period. I'm gonna get out.

If you need me to relay a message, bro, know what I'm saying, send that number.

All right.

My boy across the hall, like, we would just talk.

That's the only light that I had got in The Hole.

[shouting]

I'd never been in trouble with the law before.

I'm a ladies' dude. That was me in school.

Last summer, I got pulled over, driving without my license.

And I was put on probation.

And then, about a month ago, I was driving...

probably about ten over, and I seen Douglas County Police.

He stopped me. Boom!

"You caught a charge, a speeding charge.

You violated probation, you gonna sit in jail for a good 30 days."

That reality had hit me.

I was going to go to jail, and I ain't never been to jail before.

I kept asking him, like, don't take me to jail, bro.

Come on, I can't go to jail for nothing. Not for this.

Every single charge that I got is misdemeanors, bro.

You mess up for something small, they gonna keep you in here, 'cause...

it's a system to keep you in, not keep you out.

Hi.

I'm trying to make this girl laugh again.

There she goes. I made her laugh.

Yeah.

Winning, in jail!

She's cute, man.

[female sheriff] Why don't you have a seat out that window?

[Benjamin] Oh, shit.

And you, you gonna be in disciplinary if you don't get out that window.

Yes, ma'am.

I went into court knowing that I was gonna wind up going to jail.

So I partied all night the night before I came here.

'Cause, woohoo! Why not?

I met my wife through a conservative group on Facebook.

In the course of our dating, she became pregnant.

The only option for us was gonna be to keep our child...

and to get married, to make it right with God.

Fuck, yeah.

Our first one was a girl, and then we had a boy

about 18 months later.

[man] What?

One day, I came home from work

and just realized that my wife and my kids... were gone.

It was just like death by a thousand cuts.

The alcohol and the depression came on very, very hard.

I had to have alcohol, which brought depression,

which brought more alcohol, which brought more depression.

I was drinking 30 Budweisers per day.

After that, I lost my job...

because of depression, 'cause I didn't have my kids.

What I'm afraid of the most is that they don't know how much I love them.

Taylor, Benjamin, stand there.

Come on down. Where your shoes at?

Oh, thanks for not putting me in The Hole.

I'm gonna put you in The Hole, you keep yelling at them girls.

I'm gonna put you in door number two

so hopefully you can use the phone and try to get yourself out of here.

My brother is pretty much the only close family that I have left...

- I need to lean on him a little bit. - [brother] Hey, bud. How's it going?

I'm doing all right. Working.

I've been wanting to talk to you for a few hours now, but this sucks, dude.

30 people in a 15 by 15.

Yeah.

I'm just wondering how many days I have to do in here.

I don't know.

I'm not trying to be pushy, but I'm kind of in that situation, you know?

Yeah.

Just... think about what you're gonna do when you can get out, man.

Yeah, I don't need any more thinking time on that, man.

It's just, it's not easy. I mean, I'm...

Just hang tight, man. Nothing's gonna happen overnight.

Shit, man!

If my brother does not come up with the $4,600,

then I have no release date, which means that I could spend a whole lot of time

here at Gwinnett County Detention Center,

over a child support issue.

[inaudible]

Okay, ma'am, step in.

- In there? - Yes.

[sighing]

I've lived in a subdivision in downtown Lawrenceville 20 years now.

I bought a house... alone...

working full time, and raising four children.

Today, my husband lives there with me.

We're pretty private people and...

it's no drama.

Ever.

- What'd you do? - Hm?

What I didn't do...

Some old drunken folk I had stay in my house.

I called the police to get them out, and they came and said I can't put them out.

I was like, "What do you mean? This is my house."

And the reason I even rent my rooms is 'cause we're both senior citizens,

my husband and I, trying to make ends meet.

They said, "Well, then you have to go through eviction."

- You from-- - They were stealing,

they were damaging my property,

- they broke my door frames. - And you end up locked up?

Because...

little did I know, they were con artists. They had done this before.

When I went in the room to get his clothes out, tell him to go,

he went out the room, screaming,

"She hit me!"

And so, the officer believed them.

And they cuffed me and brought me in, charged me with simple battery.

I ain't touched this guy!

What do I look like? Trying to fight some young person?

I'm so sorry to hear about your situation, though.

No matter how you look at this, I am the victim. It's messed up.

You know how to do hair?

- I was looking cute when I came in. - You was cute!

Yeah, but I had to take all my bobby pins out.

I got you. I got you.

Let me see.

Am I doing it, or are you?

- I thought I was helping you. - Uh-uh.

I didn't ask for help.

[laughing]

There you go.

- Thank you. - You poppin' for somethin' now!

Finally, bro.

They gonna finally free the king, man.

Francis, come on down.

Want me to turn the light off?

I can't believe I'm getting out. Like, bro, am I really getting out?

Felt reality coming, like, "Yeah, you finna get out, bro.

You finna be back in the real world, and you finna be back right."

- Hey, baby. - [woman] Hey, baby.

Five o'clock is when they're gonna release me.

All I need you do do this evening is stay out of trouble. That's it.

I can do that. I promise.

[female automated voice] You have one minute left.

- Fucking bitch. - I hate her.

Little does she know, she's getting fired tonight.

You're so cute...

I love you.

We're almost there, baby.

[automated voice] Thank you for using Securus. Goodbye.

[hanging up phone]

[men's voices]

[Benjamin coughing]

[Benjamin] There's no words to describe it.

It doesn't seem like you're in the United States anymore.

They pack you in there with a bunch of drunks,

people that haven't showered, people that got nasty feet,

and then it just keeps getting nastier because you can't get a shower in there,

and it's so freaking cold, it'll blow your mind.

[inaudible]

Gentlemen, everyone needs to wake up.

Everybody get up!

[female sheriff] No talking outside the holding cell, gentlemen.

Single-file line, one person behind the other.

Who wants to trade meat for peanut?

I got a peanut sandwich for a meat sandwich. There you go. Awesome.

I have to believe that my brother is gonna be able to get me the money.

I've got to believe that.

[punching in numbers]

- Hey, good morning, good morning. - Morning, man.

Little bit of news, they're getting ready to move us to gen-pop.

You'll be a lot better once you get in general population.

Trust me. You'll have your own bed.

It'll be a lot better when I get out of here.

- Get me the fuck out of here, man. - Yeah.

Get me the fuck out of here.

Hey, listen. Just be humble and mind your own business.

I don't want you getting into a tussle with anybody.

I can't believe this is happening.

Get me out of here.

All the way around.

My number one goal is to just get my son back in my life.

But if I start slipping back into that lifestyle again,

I think that's my worst enemy.

- Hi. - Let me have your armband.

Just stay away from drugs and just got to work

and do what I need to do, be there for my son.

Then I feel like nothing's against me.

♪ You won't break me, you won't break me...♪

When someone is on the verge of being released,

I'm sure they're thinking, "I'm happy because I'm out of... out of jail."

They have all these dreams of what their life will look like,

but things don't always turn out that way.

It can be a struggle to get back to normal.

Me and my girlfriend, we've been talking on the phone every day for 30 days

and had this day planned out to a T.

Head on down south to Florida.

And I'm gonna be in heaven for a little bit.

♪ ...This force, you can't fight it ♪

♪ This thunder and lightning... ♪

Perfect timing.

♪ ...You won't break me... ♪

Hi.

Mmm...

[kissing]

Let's never do that again, okay?

Is this gas gauge right?

Yeah, we need gas.

You got any cash on you?

I got $2 on a gift card.

So you got $2, no gas...

Damn.

I did the best I could, baby.

How we going to make it there with no goddamn gas?

Hi, welcome.

We're scrimping funds here.

I think this is, like, $1.20 or something.

So what happened?

- Huh? - What happened?

I got some on there.

I so totally had a different vision...

of how this day was gonna go.

I know. Uh...

You have left us in a bind, you know that?

Two fingers on your left hand like this... Press down harder on your fingertips.

My sister is in the lobby area... waiting to come pick me up.

We out.

Me and my sister are, like, real close.

She was basically almost my second mom.

She's treated me like I was her own child.

Hey, sis! You came and got me!

- How are you? - What's up?

Learned your lesson?

Yeah. Hey, man, can you take me home?

I can't believe I'm out on the streets. I gotta see this.

Oh, my God, I ain't seen this in a month.

- So, are you finished with that stuff? - Oh, yeah, all done.

All of this you've been getting in trouble for is stupid stuff.

- But-- - You already have two strikes against you.

You're a man and you're black.

I don't want you to be a statistic.

I do not want you to be in the prison system.

I do not want you to be dead.

I don't want you to be one of those men

who can't make it because they have a background... over petty stuff.

And you have an opportunity, you're 19, to change this around.

I was going straight, too, but I was going on a right arrow--

- Was you speeding? -No, I was only going nine over. I was--

That's speeding!

This stuff is stupid.

My mindset is very different now, Raquel.

I don't want to be that same person I was before before I was locked up.

I want to be somebody different. Try to do something different.

- What, do you got a job tomorrow? - There you go.

You need to go get your stuff so you can bring my car back by nine o'clock.

When are they gonna book me? Nothing can happen until they book me.

You could make a free phone call if you want to call.

They told me they have to book me first, and they haven't booked me yet.

Girl, use that phone.

I can call somebody right now?

Yes, press one twice, and then the number.

Are you kidding me?

- Yeah... - What?

Why didn't they tell me?

[inaudible]

- Hello? - Hey.

Hey.

Let me tell you, when I came back,

that son of a gun was in there, he had carved up that turkey breast,

he was heating it up and was laughing at me in my face with a butcher knife.

Licking his... licking it.

[sighing]

I talked to a police officer, too. They said there's nothing they can do.

The police officer said there's nothing he can do.

We'll talk about that when you get out.

- Let's think about getting you out. - All right, bye.

He's a wreck.

- You could tell? - He's a wreck.

- Mrs. Stephens? - Yes.

Please stand on the yellow square for me

You're being charged with battery.

You have a $1,300 bond.

You can pay for it with a bail bondsman, property, or have somebody come

and pay that for you.

How do you get away with arresting somebody for something

that there's no proof, there's no witnesses, nothing?

Why am I sitting in jail for a battery charge?

I'm ready to get back to my regular routine, making my money,

chilling it with females, kicking it with my bros.

The little stuff, I'm gonna cherish it.

Cherish it.

[whistling a tune]

Why the fuck was the door unlocked, bro?

Bro, what...

the...

fuck?!

Somebody been in here, bro.

See that shit? I tell you, everything in this motherfucker is gone, bro.

And I had money in here.

The money I had in the motherfucking couch is gone.

They ripped the couch open and took the money out the couch.

I told y'all niggas to watch my shit while I was in jail,

and none of y'all niggas did that shit.

That's what's making me mad.

When it was their shit, they got their shit out of here.

You see, you can go look in all the other rooms, all these niggas' shit is gone.

But these niggas left my shit, with the door unlocked.

And not thinking nobody gonna run in this shit...

and take every single thing out this bitch.

It's y'all fault.

Y'all niggas is irre-fuckin'-sponsible as fuck.

And it's not even the fucking hood.

This is a fucking goddamn white area, bro.

Mendez, Miles, Taylor A, Taylor B, let's ride!

I'm getting, I think it's called "dressed in" or "dressed down".

I don't know much else about it except I'm gonna get rid of these clothes

and put... jail fatigues on.

If you can't make bond, and that 48 hours is up,

now you have to be dressed in.

General population is the housing unit that they're gonna live in.

I can imagine that's an extremely scary thing,

especially if they've never been in jail before.

You can have a minor charge and be in a room

with somebody who's committed multiple murders. You have no idea.

To your right.

All right, gentlemen, listen up. This is the orientation unit.

From here, you'll be going to your permanent housing unit.

We're gonna be watching an orientation video.

It will cover rules and regulations.

When a new inmate arrives at a facility, um, they don't usually have money.

So another inmate will offer to provide them with commissary,

and they'll demand sexual favors.

[thunder rolling]

- Oh, hey. - Hey, man.

Tonight's my first night on the block, in the yard, you know what I'm saying?

Uh... [sighing]

I don't think that's a bad thing, necessarily.

What do you think I should say to that?

There seems to be a unanimous consideration

that this is like free treatment for you,

even though you don't have the counselors, or whatever.

This is not free treatment. This is not treatment, bro.

Shit, man.

I feel a sense of let-down.

This is not rehab.

This is not counseling.

I needed help.

This is not help.

This is hell.

Look around.

♪ I try to stop but I'm in too deep ♪

♪ The pain inside don't let me sleep ♪

♪ But the mistakes that I have made ♪

♪ The fires of hell gonna make me pay ♪

♪ Tell me, Lord, why oh why ♪

♪ You got me with a spade by my side ♪

♪ Digging my own grave ♪

♪ Digging my own grave... ♪

[thunder rolling]

Fuck.

One more grind and struggle for us.

- Yeah. - We're out of gas.

Jules, Jules, Jules.

Wow... Shit.

Jules. Jules.

I need you to get over here and steer. I gotta push this motherfucker.

Oh, dear God.

[horns beeping]

[horns blaring]

Honey, Jules, steer!

- Steer! - I am!

[horn blaring]

Turn the goddamned wheel and don't hit the fucking brake!

Turn the wheel!

- Baby! - Turn the wheel to the right!

[horn blaring]

- Turn the fucking wheel to the right. - I am!

To the right! You're not turning it.

Julia, turn the goddamn wheel!

[tapping]

So, unfortunately, I need you to look for every motherfucking penny we got.

Come on, help me out, Jules.

- I heard you. Take the, take your-- - Well, you're not doing shit.

You're sitting here cussing at me for nothing. How do you want me to react--

I want you to fucking help me!

They put me here and left those people in my house, unattended.

I did not touch him.

He said, "Well, where did that bruise come from?"

I said, "Hell, if I know! He's white! You could... You hit..." It's true!

You could pinch him, they gonna bruise!

It ain't nothing against anybody white.

My husband is white.

Okay?

Hello?

The officer said I could get out on a property bond, so...

you go in the top drawer...

and get one of the mortgage statements.

It's either in the chest on the left-hand side,

or it's right next to it, outside of the chest,

on top of those gray plastic containers.

Okay. We should be coming to get you out in about a little over an hour.

Okay. All right, bye.

♪ There ain't no more time to borrow...♪

Got to walk this brisk mile right here.

♪ Ain't no more feeling free... ♪

Luckily, someone gave us two dollars to put with our 45 cents,

and we have...

1.1 gallons to hopefully make it to Florida.

Otherwise, I'm gonna be walking some more.

♪ ...I had so many dreams back then... ♪

I definitely don't think I'm a criminal.

♪...I was waiting for a pain to come... ♪

I just feel like I'm getting caught in the wrong situation at the wrong time.

I just want to stay out of the system and...

I feel like if I can stay out of the system,

then I can get my feet more planted.

Just more... stable, you know?

The time I felt most stable in my life was...

probably when my son was born.

You know, I felt a whole different type of love that I never knew I had.

So I want to keep that in my life.

And then also, I don't want him to go through what I went through.

I never had a dad, really.

He would be in and out of my life...

and making empty promises to come see me and this and that.

When me and my wife first split up...

I felt myself being exactly like him

and I can even remember sending him a text saying,

"I'm starting to realize that I'm starting to be just like you

and I hate every moment of it."

[sobbing]

So, basically...

it just drives me to push harder.

I'm mad because I specifically asked y'all niggas to watch my shit.

And y'all pulled a dumb-ass move and kept the door unlocked.

Y'all niggas is gettin y'all ass beat,

and then niggas gonna be like, "Oh, bro, uh..." Shut up! I don't want to hear that.

I'm hot right now, and I'm really just trying to stay calm.

I'm happy I'm in the free world again, and I'm not trying to go back to jail.

Trying to be a better person.

And me going over there,

beating somebody up, is not gonna make me a better person.

I didn't go to jail to come back out with the same mindset.

And that's that's what I told you, like I told my sister.

Yeah, my sister said that she needs her car at nine.

So I have so much respect for my sister to bring back her car before nine.

I said the same shit.

Hey, sis!

Stephens.

You're being released.

Come around this way.

When I go home, I'm gonna take some pain medicine,

get in the bathtub, and get into bed.

Here's your other items.

Leave them inside the bag, please.

Sign right there.

Take that sheet of paper with you along with the rest of your property.

Step through the door with the glass in it.

- Can't you follow directions? - I'm sorry?

I asked you to leave them inside the bag, that's what I asked you.

Yeah, a minute ago.

And?

Yes.

I can't put my ring on?

Now, I can hold onto it for you, send you downstairs,

and have you wait for me to walk it down to you.

Okay, have a good day, too.

I'm convinced...

that everybody in here has taken classes on how to be a class-A asshole.

Because to be on point...

it's just too much of a coincidence.

Unbelievable. Are all jails like this, or is it just this one?

I don't know how I find the willpower to keep going. I just do.

And all these obstacles, like, I'd do this a hundred times over

than to be in Gwinnett County Jail.

What's up, what up, what up, man?

What's up, baby? What's up, what's up, what's up?

I got something for y'all, you feel me?

My support system is A-1. I'm not a troubled kid.

I know what I'm about to do.

Man, you know, I was in The Hole for about two weeks.

- Right. - I'm in that hole, and they can't hold me.

Man, crank that beat, man. You know what I'm saying?

[rapping] ♪ I get to the money, get whack Don't talk to me, you gon' get smacked ♪

♪ Yo, bitch, you be sound like a gnat I get to the money, get whack... ♪

You can't take that off.

- Gotta keep it on? - Yeah.

I figured, I didn't know the rules, but I figured if I broke them,

somebody would certainly tell me. Okay.

- Yoshua, how old are you? - 19.

An immigration officer arrested me.

They're trying to send me back to my country for shoplifting.

- I was supposed to get married tomorrow. - Goddamn.

[woman] We need to get married ASAP.

I already had it all planned out. Ring's waiting at home.

I really love this girl. She's always been there for me.

Breaks my heart. Everything just falls apart.

I don't know what's going on. Immigration is gonna send you back...

I was really hoping that... It breaks my heart that I can't come back...

I wish I could go back in time and... make things different.