due to mature subject matter, viewer discretion is advised. msnbc takes you behind the walls of america's most notorious prisons into a world of chaos and danger. now, the scenes you have never seen. "lockup raw." >> yeah. >> this is how you do it here. >> you do your back that way, you know what i'm saying? nobody getting up in here. >> few things in prison are as

key to survival as having a good cellmate. >> when you live with a person 24 hours a day, you build up a brotherhood, a sense of -- you build up a rapport you don't have with your family. and you're both dependent on each other for survival. >> but some cellmates can't get along. lockup crews suffered accounts of inmates attacking their cell mates. >> i got into an altercation with my bunky. i stabbed him. >> i stuffed my head up his ass to my forearm and i made him drink out of the toilet and took the towel and strangled him. >> i tore up the sheet and wrapped it around his head. i said you ain't doing nothing. >> but at the brushy mountain correctional complex in tennessee, we met two cell mates who were not ohm successfully living together but doing so in a maximum security unit locked up 23 hours per day. >> it's not mind of fun. you're stuck in a cell. we go out, me and him go out and

work out every day, come back in the cell and watch tv and listen to the radio. that's our life every day. >> sky bishop was sent to the hole when he refused to share a cell with an inmate the prison assigned him. >> what about your cellmate now? >> i've known him for over a year. that's my buddy right there. i have no problems with him. we always got along. i had him moved down here. he wanted to move in. it makes time a lot easier if you have a roommate you get along with, you have something in common with. makes prison life a lot easier. >> when it came time for his interview, sky's cellie jason davis expressed reservations. >> i don't like a camera in my face, you know what i'm saying? they say it adds ten pounds, too. >> you're worried about the camera? >> no, i'm just messing with you. just joking. trying to make you laugh. >> jason and sky were a real team. they were playing cards, they're smoking cigarettes. i think it was their way to survive. you know, he's got his back. the other guy's got his. that's the way they made it work.

>> lonely here. >> both men conceded drug use played a part in putting them in prison. bishop's aggravated assault conviction started over a parking space in a mall. >> he was smarting off to my girlfriend. i got in a fight with a guy and ended up stabbing him and running his buddy off the road, off the interstate. i got six years for it. >> davis has a 17-year sentence for attempted murder but claims he was only defending himself. >> two people came in to rob me, i shot them both. i shot one with a gun. in the state of tennessee, you cannot shoot people regardless if they're in your house, on your property, anything. if they rob you, they have to run. they say call the law, whatever. you cannot defend yourself in the state of tennessee no more. >> cell inmates, you hear their story, you don't know what's the truth, what's not. well, as we dug further into the story, we're like peeling layers of an onion a little bit. >> i was up seven or eight days at this time, too.

if you've ever been up that long, you know you're hallucinating. you know what i'm saying? >> turns out he was high on crystal meth. >> basically, what i thought when they come in, you know, i mean like i have friends running in and out of this house all the time. it is a bachelor house, know what i'm saying? i thought they came to rob me. >> i think things got out of hand for him. >> i shot one with a .9 millimeter twice with a leg and got one with a bow in the gut. >> prior to prison, both men have been married. but as they revealed in some surprisingly candid confessions to our crew, they took very different approaches to matrimony. >> what happened to your wife? >> she didn't want to get a divorce but i divorced her anyway. i want her to move on with her life. i have so much time now. i have 17 1/2 years. i still got parole. but it's hard telling when i make it. i just want her to move on with her life. >> in contrast, bishop is receiving letters and occasional visits from both his wife and an ex-girlfriend. >> does your wife know about the other woman? >> she knows about her.

i mean she's known about her for a long time. she knows it's not a big deal. she knows i love her and she's the one i'm going to be with. >> what's going on? you're in prison. >> i guess the sun shines on a dog's ass some day. >> but the reality is, neither man will actually be with a woman for ea long time. >> how do you deal with that? you have 17 years. how do you deal with that? >> you don't have a choice in here to do anything unless you turn gay, you know what i'm saying? i don't turn gay. every now and then i might masturbate in the shower. i ain't going to lie. all men have done it. all men in prison probably do it. after so many years of this, you're going to play with yourself or something. >> while davis and bishop were open and friendly during the interview, cameraman steve field was reminded that in prison, things aren't always as they seem. >> after we finished up the interview, we said our good-byes and jason davis extended his hand through the bars to shake. and i didn't think about it.

i shook his hand. and he grabbed me. it was almost like he was trying to crush my hand to the point he really wanted to hurt me. it was that moment, that one little moment where i thought what have i done? what have i done? that incident with jason davis has always stuck with me. i always tried to figure out what the heck was that all about? was that to show me he's in charge? i'm with a camera but he wanted to let me know this is his house. it may have been a macho, spontaneous moment for him. for me, it was a scary, real moment. >> next on "lockup raw" -- >> to me, the cells are too small. i think it is wired for homosexuality. >> one inmate's fight for solitude. >> we're inside that cell all day. that's not a luxury of prison. you should have thought about that before you went to prison.

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while a good cellmate may help make prison more tolerable for some inmates, others believe that any cellmate is a threat to their survival. >> if i don't take a cellmate, i can be sure they won't murder me. a cellmate won't rape me or beat me. when you refuse, you're going against their policy of they stick you in the hole. >> and that's exactly where we met dennis hamilton, in the hole. solitary confinement in california's kern valley state prison. it was the second time his refusal to share a cell landed him there.

but his time in the hole was about to end and he was scheduled to return to general population where sharing his cell is mandatory. >> to me the cells are too small. i think it -- the cell breeds an environment for homosexuality. >> dennis hamilton was an unusual inmate. he just really didn't have to live with another man. i think he had a fear about living with another man. >> and to me it's like you don't want these people in society with you. you want me to feel safe inside a cell with this person. >> ironically, other inmates may not feel safe around hamilton either. he is serving a life sentence for kidnapping, carjacking, robbery, and assault with a deadly weapon. nine years in, he's only now decided to make his stand against taking a cellmate. >> there is no rule i have to take a cellie. dude, i don't want to live with another man for the rest of my

life. >> 127. >> the prisoners officials disagree. we followed him to an administrative hearing on the matter. >> here we go. escort! >> you don't have any enemies. >> no. >> you seem to be a guy that gets along with people. >> yes. >> why won't you take a cell mate? >> i feel threatened in a cell. i feel my life is in danger. >> okay. so let me tell you what path you're going down now. right now it seems like okay it's no big deal. you've been locked up twice for it. there is documentation on one. there is going to be another documentation on another one. and if you keep going and you don't take a cellie, guess what happens? >> what? >> indeterminate shoe.

>> the shoe is the secured housing unit where they live under the harshest restrictions in the entire state. while shoe inmates usually get their own cell, they lose all other privileges. >> so you don't get visits. >> no. no. no, it's -- no. >> i'm just telling you. >> they don't matter. >> in order to be a programmer, you have to show that you're willing to be socially acceptable with somebody else in your cell. otherwise you're a program failure. that's all i'm trying to tell you. >> okay. >> you don't want to do it but you're going to do it. okay? i'm serious. you don't have to marry him. >> it doesn't seem that way. you're placing this inmate in the cell with me. i mean we're not -- we're not outside that cell all day. we're inside that cell all day. >> yeah, but that should have been a consideration before you went into prison.

>> the committee is baffled. not only by hamilton's stubbornness but by its sudden appearance after nine years behind bars at other state prisons. >> he has taken a cellie up until he got here. >> that's not a luxury of being in prison. he should have thought about that before went to prison. he has to have a cellie. >> escorted back to his cell, hamilton is optimistic he'll win his battle and return to general population without a cellmate. >> i'm happy. i don't have to -- i get my tv, radio and my property back. >> later, we were with hamilton as officers escorted him to his new general population cell. >> just relax. it's all right. don't get tense. i can feel the tenseness. >> can you? >> yeah. it's all right.

>> finally, hamilton reaches his new cell and his new cellmate. the relationship is short lived. >> go ahead. close it. close it. >> okay. we got to come back. >> all right. >> before hamilton's return to the cell, his escort officers make one more attempt to reason with him. >> you have to find somebody to be compatible with. eventually we're going to run out of bed space. >> i'm not asking you to do it for everybody. >> you're just asking special favoritism for yourself. >> no. >> i have a medical reason. >> you don't have a medical reason. >> they say an inmate has to be housed with another inmate? yes or no? >> no. you can talk to the sergeant about that.

>> then something happened in prison that i've never seen happened in prison before. the officer brought out the rule book. >> okay, hamilton. this here is the state prison operational procedure number 222. >> and set it down in front of dennis and said, look, here's what it says. >> in a nutshell, it says that every inmate will accept a cell mate. have you seen this? that means single cell status. if you're attached to your cdc number, then we'll never, ever try to house you with another inmate because you have gone through all the hoops, whatever it takes, either you committed battery on your inmate, your cell partners or you've, you know -- and it's now -- >> or commit battery. >> or a psychiatrist says you're not crazy.

>> that's your answer. >> call the governor. that's pretty much it for me. >> hamilton was sent back to the hole. a few days later, he heard of an alarming new development in his case. he assaulted an officer. >> sometimes you anticipate the moves in terms of what they're going to do and capability and sometimes you just are surprised. i -- i didn't think he was going to take it to this level where he would assault staff. >> the officer was not badly injured. but it landed hamilton back in administrative segregation with a high probability of being sent to the shoe, a place most inmates dread. >> to me, it's still prison. it's not going to change. it's still prison. if you send me to the shoe, if you send me to one. it's prison. i can't leave when i want. i can't do what i want.

but this is what i can control. i can control putting another inmate in there. since i can control that, you won't place another inmate in there. >> next on "lockup raw" -- >> yes, i had a job. i was a professional escort. i was running my ads in "playtime" and "sex action" magazine. >> charged with murder, a former call girl makes peace with the past. >> yes, i had nice cars, living like a star with the bling, bling and dress code and gun always on lock and load and a long dark road going nowhere. what's new, flo? well, a name your price tool went missing last week. name your what, now? it gives you coverage options based on your budget. i just hope whoever stole it knows that it only works at progressive.com. so, you can't use it to just buy stuff? s jrksz no. i'm sorry, gustav. we have to go back to the pet store. [ gustav squawks ] he's gonna meet us there. the name your price tool. still only at progressive.com.

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built for business. prison is tailor made to fit anybody. whether you're young, old, professional, nonprofessional, on skid row, white collar, blue collar, it is taylor made to fit

anyone. so don't think, you know, it won't happen to you. you commit this crime and you won't come to jail or go to prison because you will. >> we met winona collins at the miami-dade county jail. >> my charge is second-degree murder. >> attempted, or -- >> second-degree murder. the person is deceased. >> still awaiting her trial, she didn't want to discuss the details of her crime. but she was quite frank about everything else. >> what were you doing before you came in here? did you have a job? >> yes. i had a job. i was a professional escort. i had -- i was running my ads in "play time" magazine and "sex action magazine." i had two or three lines i was running from my house. i was formalized to my cell phone. i could -- there was a 24-hour operation. i had maybe a few girls working for me besides my cousin. and, you know, i used to go out on calls. and so i used to make good money.

>> the thing about gwen is she is facing a long prison sentence possibly for second-degree murder. and she has kids. >> this is kevin. this is ricky. they're the loves of my life. he's 12 and he's 11. >> the thought that she would not be able to would be her kids or even right then was able to take care of her kids was literally torturing her. >> how do you explain to your children your situation? how do you tell them that, you know, that mommy is in jail and i might go away for a while? you know, i have a calendar to watch the days go by. you know, count the days. >> collins, a single mother, told us she used her escort service to support her family after previous convictions for fraud and grand theft made it tough to find a more conventional job. >> they say equal opportunity. there is no equal opportunity. they don't hire convicted felons. they don't hire murderers. they don't hire people like us. you know?

and it's funny because i was going for a position one time and i took a microsoft entry level test and i scored a 98%. i'm very intelligent. and they would not give me a job because i was a convicted felon. i told the lady, i said you're telling me you'd rather pay higher taxes than give me a job? you'd rather pay higher taxes and build more prisons and more jails than offer me a job and you know i'm qualified for it? and she told me, sorry, those are the rules. so the system is kind of messed up. i think that's why a lot of people keep coming back. >> though frustrated by the system, collins found a way to voice her grievances. >> okay. my name is gwen collins. the poem is why i write poetry. i don't write poetry for the same, speaking loud with no shame, the words i spit i claim, it's part of the game i call life. i consider myself an artist painting mental pictures in my head. >> we saw collins the slam poet

when she gave an impromptu performance for the women in her jail dorm. >> in the bible it says god blesses babies and fools, i think that god has a sense of humor because income a woman's detention center is not all he has in store me. that's how i began to write poetry. it saved me from arguments and headaches and heartaches. >> and like i like it because i feel that i can express. i can teach. i can motivate others. i feel good when i'm up there. >> when i'm on stage and recite i'm on the mike, i feel free. there is no boundaries. living a life of crime is nothing but misery. i had nice cars and living like a star with the bling, bling and dress code and my gun on lock and load and a long dark road going nowhere. >> poetry had such an effect on the younger women inmates, being moved to tears. they were so overwhelmed by what she had to say to them. >> this poet i have deep down in the core. i'm here to stay. i found my way. i want to be heard for all to hear and see.

but to be honest, i do it. i do it for me. >> so articulate. so verbal, so poetic. it just makes you wonder where would she have been if she wasn't in jail or gone down this path. >> i walked a mile here. you know? i've walked the mile. and it's kind of rough on me. i look out the window and i get sad. >> loving unified family, dignified, positive attitude, endless opportunities will arise, surprise, i'm not. >> do i have hope? oh, yeah. i have an abundance of it. i got a pocketful of hope. i can give you some. >> divine, touch every person i meet through tribulations and trials. i wake up every morning and thank god with a smile. i'm a survivor. [ cheers and applause ]

i found her wandering miles from home. when the phone rang at 5am, i knew it was about mom. i see how hard it's been on her at work and i want to help.

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