Federal Correctional Institution Butner Medium 1 is a medium-security federal prison in Butner, North Carolina. It is also known as FCI Butner Medium 1, Butner Federal Correctional Center, and the federal prison in Butner, NC. FCI Butner Camp is adjacent to the primary institution. Both Butner Correctional Facilities house male inmates.
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Table of contents
FCI Butner Medium 1 Contact Information
Facility Address & Contact Information
Federal Correctional Institution Butner Medium 1
Old Highway 75
Butner, NC 27509
Phone: 919-575-4541
Fax: 919-575-2091
Email: [email protected]
BOP Website: Bureau of Prisons Page
Wikipedia: Wikipedia Page
Inmate Correspondence Address
FCI Butner Medium 1
Inmate Name and Registration Number
FCI Butner Medium 1
Federal Correctional Institution
P.O. Box 1000
Butner, NC 27509
FCI Butner Prison Camp
Inmate Name and Registration Number
FCI Butner Camp
Satellite Prison Camp
P.O. Box 1000
Butner, NC 27509
How to Send Money
Butner Federal Correctional Center inmates may not receive funds directly. See our page on sending money to federal prisoners.
Federal Correctional Institution Butner Medium 1 Inmate Information
Inmate Gender
Male Inmates
Prison Security Level
Facility Location
FCI Butner Medium 1 is in North Carolina near the Research Triangle area of Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill. It is 5 miles off I-85 on Old Highway 75.
BOP Region
BOP Institution Code
BUT for Butner Medium 1, BUX for Butner Federal Correctional Complex
Medical Care Level
Level 3. See our page on Medical Care Levels and Procedures for more information.
Mental Health Care Level
Level 1.
Judicial District
Eastern District of North Carolina
Population Number
Butner Correctional Facility houses approximately 580 inmates. The camp houses around 200 inmates.
FCI Butner Medium 1 Prison Services Information
Background
Federal Correctional Institution Butner Medium 1 is a medium-security federal prison in Butner, North Carolina, which houses male inmates.
The facility has an inpatient psychiatric hospital that houses people with mental health conditions. All federally committed sex offenders are also housed at the institution.
The federal prison in Butner, NC, was opened in 1976 and is part of the Butner Federal Correctional Complex. Federal Correctional Institution Butner Camp, which also houses male inmates, is adjacent to the central institution.
Notable inmates include:
- Bernie Madoff: serving a 150-year sentence for fraud, money laundering, perjury, and theft.
- Former Colombo family crime boss Carmine Persico: serving a 139-year sentence for murder, loansharking, bribery, and extortion.
Media reports indicate that at least one guard has been convicted of attempting to obtain drugs from an inmate.
FCC Butner also includes Federal Medical Center Butner and FCI Butner Medium II. The correctional complex is owned and operated by the United States Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Inmate Housing
FCI Butner Medium 1 houses inmates in a variety of styles. Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Duke, and Maryland housing units consist of primarily two-person cells. Wake Forest, State, Clemson, and Virginia all have cubes and cells with occupancy ranging from 6 to 10 people, though with some area dividers.
The Maryland Commitment & Treatment Unit is where civilly committed sex offenders are housed. Those participating in treatment are single-celled, while those refusing to participate are double-celled.
The minimum-security Butner, NC, camp houses inmates in two-person rooms. These are divided into personal cubicles. Deaf inmates are housed in two-person cells which have special fire alert systems.
Health Services
Inmates receive a medical screening upon arrival at FCI Butner Medium 1. Inmates are then scheduled for routine physical examinations, laboratory studies, physical and dental examinations, and assessment of any health needs.
Butner Correctional Facility inmates have access to the following medical services:
- Sick Call
- Dental Sick Call
- Emergency Care
- Medications
- Chronic Care
- Physical Examinations
Butner Federal Correctional Center inmates also have access to periodic health screenings for HIV, TB, colon cancer (for inmates over 50 years of age), diabetes and cholesterol screening (for inmates over 45), and vaccinations.
Other preventive health services may be available based on the inmate’s age and needs.
Inmates at the federal prison in Butner, NC, can attend sick calls on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings at 6:30 a.m.
Pill and insulin lines are conducted at:
- 6:00 a.m.
- 10:30 a.m.
- 5:00 p.m.
- 7:30 p.m.
On the weekends, pill and insulin lines are held at 7:00 a.m., 11:30 a.m., and 7:30 p.m.
Psychology Services
Each housing unit at FCI Butner Medium 1 has a psychologist assigned to provide inmates with counseling and other mental health services. These services include individual counseling and group therapy.
Groups therapy options include the following:
- Stress Management
- Anger Management
- Thinking for a Change
- Victim Impact
- Violence Prevention
The Butner Correctional Center also offers a self-help library and DVD program. Civilly committed individuals do not have access to regular psychology services.
Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP)
FCI Butner Medium 1 houses a Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP). The Drug Education Class, the Non-Residential Drug Abuse Program (NR-DAP), Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) are also available.
FCI Butner Medium 1 Educational, Library, and Recreation Offerings
Education Services
FCI Butner Medium 1 offers inmates a GED, Spanish GED, GED in American Sign Language, and English-as-a-Second Language (ESL). Adult Continuing Education classes are available in 24 different subjects.
High school diplomas and post-secondary education programs are available through paid correspondence programs. A local community college also offers lectures on business topics.
The Butner Federal Correctional Center’s hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 7:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 to 8:10 p.m. The department is closed Friday nights.
The prison’s Education Department is also open on Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Civilly committed inmates do not have access to the Education Department.
Advanced Occupational Education
The federal prison in Butner, NC, offers advanced occupational education in Carpentry, Electrical, Horticulture 1, 2 & 3, and Logistics. The camp provides Horticulture 1 & 2.
Vocational Training
Butner federal prison does not offer vocational training programs besides advanced occupational training and apprenticeship programs.
Apprenticeship
FCI Butner Medium 1 offers an apprenticeship program for Logistics Coordinators.
Library Services
Butner Correctional Facility offers a legal and leisure library to inmates. The leisure library has numerous books and other reading materials available, including magazines and newspapers, career planning, multicultural studies and parenting materials, and fiction and nonfiction selections.
At Butner Federal Correctional Center and the camp, the law library is in the Education Department, which contains various legal reference materials to prepare legal papers. Inmates have access to the Trust Fund Limited Inmate Communication System (TRULINCS) law library computers for legal research needs.
UNICOR
FCI Butner Medium 1 has a UNICOR facility that makes eyeglasses for BOP inmates.
Commissary
Inmates may shop in the prison commissary only once per week. The monthly spending limit is $360, though this is further divided into a $180 biweekly spending limitation.
Butner federal prison inmates shop on specific shopping days. The commissary is open Monday through Thursday from 12:30 to 1:00 p.m. and 5:30 to 6:00 p.m.
Inmates turn in their commissary slips, receive a number, wait for their number, and collect their purchases when shopping.
Recreation Services
Recreation programs at FCI Butner Medium 1 include both indoor and outdoor components.
Inside, inmates have access to these prison recreation programs:
- Arts and Crafts
- Airbrushes
- Ceramics
- Pool Tables
- Leather Room
- Band Room
- TVs
- Basketball
- Ellipticals
- Treadmills
- Stationary Bikes
- Pull-Up Bars
Outside, Butner Federal Correctional Center inmates have access to the following:
- Weight Pile
- Track
- Softball
- Soccer
- Basketball
- Yoga
- Horseshoes
- Bocce Ball
- Handball
- Racquetball
- Football
The Recreation Department’s hours of operation are:
- Monday through Friday: 6:30 to 10:30 a.m., 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., and 4:30 to 8:30 p.m.
- Weekends: 7:00 to 9:30 a.m., 10:30 to 3:30 p.m., and 4:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Visitation Information for FCI Butner Medium 1
Visitation is 8:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Friday visitation is between 2:30 and 8:00 p.m. Federal holidays visitation is from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. All visits are conducted in the visitation room.
See our page on prisoner visitation rules for more information on how to visit an inmate.
FCI Butner Medium 1 Prison Culture Information
Prison Politics at Federal Correctional Institution Butner Medium 1
The federal prison in Butner, NC, is not a political yard. One inmate reported this being a “drop-out yard,” while another referred to it as a “safe yard.”
Level of Violence
Violence is minimal and rare at Butner Correctional Facility. According to one inmate, “We have our typical fights that break out, but it is not very frequent.” Another respondent pegged the number at one fight a month.
Vulnerable Populations
Sex offenders, informants, and LGBT inmates can stay at the federal prison in Butner, NC. According to one inmate, “This is a hideout yard with many sex offenders, informants, gang drop-outs, and gay and transgender inmates. Most of the time, all of these inmates may walk the yard. Sex offenders are rarely run off.”
Good at Butner Federal Prison
“Very laid back and friendly. No politics. Plants and trees around the compound.”
“The yard is very relaxed and is run like a low custody yard. No locked doors in the cells. No violence. There are many programs and accommodations for the deaf community such as VRS, VRI, interpreters, visual alerts, and employment options.”
Bad at Butner Correctional Facility
“There are very few good things about this yard. The bad thing is that this is a split compound due to the housing of committed sex offenders who have to be separated from the general population. It creates a lot of stress, anger, frustration, and hatred from staff and general population inmates.” “Nothing is on schedule, and the staff isn’t great.”
Other Inmate Comments
“A very good place to be. A good place to do time.” “This facility is not bad.” “It’s a good place to do time if you can get here.”
“This facility was once a very good place, but after the passage of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006, this facility went downhill.”
Butner Federal Correctional Center in the News
In 2017, Bernie Madoff, sentenced to 150 years in prison for stealing $17.5 billion from investors, monopolized the hot chocolate market at Federal Correctional Institution Butner Medium 1.
In 2011, Nathan Prady, a kitchen supervisor at FCI Butner Medium 1, was sentenced to six years in prison after encouraging a prisoner to obtain heroin for him.
More Information About Federal Correctional Institution Butner Medium 1
For a comprehensive look at life in federal prison, pick up a copy of Christopher Zoukis’ Federal Prison Handbook: The Definitive Guide to Surviving the Federal Bureau of Prisons. For more detailed information about FCI Butner Medium 1, please buy a copy of the Directory of Federal Prisons: The Unofficial Guide to Bureau of Prisons Institutions by Christopher Zoukis.
Your FCI Butner Medium 1 Federal Prison Experts
Contact us at the Zoukis Consulting Group if you or a loved one are at the Butner Correctional Facility. We can answer your questions, help resolve issues, and help you seek an early release from custody.
Schedule a one-hour initial consultation with a Butner Correctional Facility expert today!
Published Apr 24, 2018 by Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA | Last Updated by Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA on Jan 20, 2025 at 3:11 pm