'Coaches' Help New Inmates Move from Suits to Stripes

The recession is providing new career opportunities for criminals turned consultants, reports the Los Angeles Times. Using the web, “jailhouse litigators” coach future inmates who’ve been convicted of white-collar crimes that presumably haven't prepared them for life on the inside. “We deal with anybody who has fears,” said one consultant, who preps clients on prison lingo, behavior, and culture, and how offers advice on surviving behind bars.

Says one counselor: “It’s like going to a foreign country and having to learn a new language.” Litigators charge anywhere from a few hundred to thousands of dollars, and clients—who learn how to file grievances, obtain a plum prison job, or get a better lockup—are grateful. One reasoned, “If you’re getting divorced, you call a friend who’s been divorced.”
(More jail stories.)