Tony Vick

Tony has served almost three decades of a life sentence in Tennessee. He is the author of two books, Secrets From a Prison Cell (Cascade Books, 2018) and Locked In and Locked Out (Resource Publications, 2023). His writing has also been published at Solitary Watch, the Progressive, Truthout, Shado and in multiple books and anthologies, the most recent of which is Storms of the Inland Sea (Shanti Arts, 2022). His Filter story about CoreCivic medical care won “Best News” at the 2025 Stillwater Prison Journalism Awards. You can reach him by USPS.

Tony Vick #276187
South Central Correctional Facility
PO Box 279
Clifton, TN 38425-0279

How Tennessee’s Anti-LGBTQ+ Bills Are Already Playing Out in Prison

Through my three decades of incarceration in Tennessee, I’ve seen attitudes toward LGBTQ+ prisoners like myself change a lot. But…

March 16, 2026

Tennessee Prison Guards Want to Wear Body Cams. Prisoners Want That, Too.

Tennessee’s GOP-supermajority legislature seems to have found a bipartisan idea it can support: body-worn cameras for corrections officers in the…

March 4, 2026

The False Promises of TRICOR, Tennessee’s Prison Jobs Initiative

For the past decade I worked at the print plant at South Central Correctional Facility, one of the few jobs…

February 11, 2026

“Your Life Is Over”: Prison Guards on 16-Hour Shifts With No Backup

Three decades ago when I began my prison sentence, corrections officers worked eight-hour shifts. Some did the work well and…

January 6, 2026

As Gang Power Expands, Protective Custody in Prisons Is Changing

During my nearly 30 years of incarceration in the Tennessee prison system, there has always been a need for protective…

December 8, 2025

Tennessee Is Prosecuting Prison Violence, and Making It a Lot Worse

It used to be that if someone in the custody of the Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) stabbed another prisoner,…

November 19, 2025

Not All Prisoners Get Fed Daily. Here, It Depends on How Fast You Can Run.

In three decades of incarceration I’ve seen many things that are a far cry from what the system presents to…

November 6, 2025

A Prison Mental Health Unit Is Left in Gen Pop, and the Grievance Is Ignored

South Central Correctional Facility is one of six Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) prisons with a supportive living unit (SLU)…

October 9, 2025

National Guard Sent to “Fight” Gangs in Memphis—But Gangs Run Tennessee’s Prisons

Any moment now, an unknown number of Tennessee National Guard troops are expected to arrive in Memphis to fight so-called…

September 30, 2025

Many Prisoners Take the GED Test. It’s Hard to Get a Job in Here Without It.

In 2022, Tennessee amended its state constitution to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude as punishment for a crime. Before this,…

September 4, 2025