Complaint Review: Federal Prison Experts Incorporated - Port Orange Florida

I have been a client of Ed Bales on a continuous basis since July of 2008, and continue to be a satisfied client.  I have been pleased with his competence, his work ethic, his candor, and his realistic assessment of what results can be expected.

To his detractors, the first step I would suggest is to make an honest comparison of the expectations that Mr. Bales expressed to them and those that they created in their own minds.  Only the Congress of the United States can force BOP to do anything that BOP does not feel is in their best interest, and even they frequently require a Federal Court Ruling to do so.   Thus, getting BOP to do something or to not do something becomes a matter of persuasion - a lenghty and often tenuous path.
To those who think the right strategy is to try to force BOP into something, I suggest they find a way to get their request into Federal Court.  To those who expect miracles, I suggest they spend more time on their knees.

With Sincerity,

C.M. Bateman 

Ed Bales and Joe Gunja have been a tremendous help in assisting a friend of mine who is an inmate in a Federal Prison.  He has experienced serious health issues since his incarceration and with Ed's assistance he has received excellent medical care and attention to his on-going medical condition.  Ed's involvement opened the lines of communications with the prison that are not accessible to inmates on their own.  

We have been extremely pleased with the assistance we have received from Mr. Bales and Mr. Gunja.

My experience with Federal Prison Consultants and Ed Bales has been exceptional.  Ed Bales and his team are top notch.  They operate in an arena that is very difficult to predict the outcome yet despite the difficulties Mr. Bales has delivered on all his promises to me.  Here is one example: I was entering a 6 year term into a Federal Prison Camp and Federal Prison Consultants was able to make my transition far better for me and my family.  They gave me invaluable education on pratical matters such as what and how I might be able to bring a few extra items in such as running shoes, a watch, sweats, underwear, socks and t-shirts. They were able to help me up in several other ways regarding my case, sentence and expected release date that I am not at liberty to discuss but are significant.  They gave me a crash course in how to deal with the unkown I was facing, which is if for certain the most uncertain time for anyone that has not done time.  Mr. Bales and his team is sincere, caring and compassionate.   They know this system better than anyone.  They can help make any situation you are facing far better.  They know how to get the process that the FBP requires pushed along and are well worth what they charge. 

As for this situation, perhaps there are circumstances that are just not as they seem.  If you are involved with the Federal system then you already know that things are never what they seem and every case is different.  Mr. Bales has always under promissed and over delivered.  Federal Prison Consultants are the best team out there helping in this arena...they are the real deal and I highly recommend them.

Copies of the following comments from clients can be obtained by contacting me at [email protected] or info@federalprisonexperts.   The letters I will be posting are from clients who rebut the negative information posted.

Subj:  Thank You
Date:  12/14/2010 5:48 P.M. Eastern Standard Time
From:  [email protected]
To:      [email protected]

Dear Mr. Bales,

I just wanted to thank you and your staff for keeping me informed on Artie Dufur's case.  I have really enjoyed working with Joyce Maxie.  Because of her professionalism and speedy response to any of my
concerns, I feel assured that Artie's case is being handled with much care and consideration.  I appreciate
all that you have both done and are doing.  I would recommend your company to anyone.  Thank you
again.

Sincerely,
Lorraine Veillett
=
*****************************************************************

Subject:      Federal Prison Consultants
Date:          12/0/2010  11:54 P.M. Eastern Standard Time
From:         [email protected]
To:              [email protected]


I hired Federal Prison Consultants almost two years ago.   I have found them to be very
knowledgeable and very helpful and very passionate in helping people who are being 
sentenced and have been in prison.   Their compassion also extends to the families of 
inmates.

They always return calls and emails and they work very hard to keep on top of the case
they were retained.  They are with you from the beginning of the sentence and stay with 
you until the time has come for release.

Federal Prison Consultants also are here to help with inmate matters that require
outside assistance and know what is needed and who to contact to get answers from
the Dept. of Federal Prisons.

I have found Mr. Bales to be honest with me and help me when my family member
needs his guidance.  It does help to have someone to talk to about the Prison system 
and the answers may not be what we want to hear but what you will hear is, why
something is or is not possible and how to go about the best possible way to have a
case heard by the right officials so that the inmates best interests are being presented.

Sincerely, Pam B.

*********************************************************

December 4th, 2010

To Whom It May Concern:

          I am writing this letter to recommend Mr. Ed Bales to anyone who might need
his services.   After serving my sentence in the Federal system, I was transferred to a halfway 
house in Cleveland, Ohio.  The halfway house was a nightmare.   It was filthy and 
disgusting.  Their claims of being a "reentry program" were not true at all.  After
completing all my requirements to be eligible to go on home confinement, I was told they
would get to my paperwork when they had time.   Time after time I was lied to and  giving
false information.   Even though I had done everything they had required of me and had no 
incident reports in both Federal Prison and in the halfway house, they refused to complete
my paperwork to allow me to go home.   My husband and I then enlisted the help of Mr.
Bales.   After the first conversation with Mr. Bales, I finally felt relief that there was an
advocate for my situation.  He made the phone calls to the BOP and discovered that the
halfway house was holding up my paperwork.   He requested answers from the halfway
house but they were unwilling to answer him.   He then contacted the BOP and made them
aware of my situation.   He made many follow up calls, emails, and faxes and stayed on
top of the situation.   He kept my husband and I informed of the progress.   I was released 4
days later.  It was such a relief to finally be going home to my family.   I am confident that
had Mr. Bales not intervened, I would have not been released.   My only regret is that we 
had not contacted him sooner.   If you find yourself or a family member in need of his 
services, please take this recommendation into consideration.

Sincerely,


Bridget Varnes
[email protected]

******************************************************   

From:    Robert McCabe (51572056)
Date:     12/2/2010 9:05:39 AM
Subject: thanks  

Message:   

My name is robert m.  i was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for obstruction of
justice and it seemed like the world was coming to an end for me and I had so much to do and so
many questions that needed to be answered then i found ed bales and spoke directly to mr. 
bales and ended up getting a 90 day extension to my original report date which allowed me to
get all my affairs in order before reporting and had my placement only 2 hours from my home
as well as as assisting me in sentence reduction programs and is now working with me on the
half way house placement if you are unfortunate enough to be sentenced to a federal prison
I would not do it alone i see so many nightmares in here of people that did get professional
experienced help save you self allot of grief and use this service    robert m.

********************************************************

From:     DERRICK LANDER (O9799033)
Date:      12/2/2010 8:25:57 AM
Subject:  Derrick L. KY
Message:

Mr. Bales and his staff has always been RIGHT there when I needed information or any
consultation.  They were very prompt with the e-mails that I sent out.   And they have worked
closely with my family to make sure that I was always treated fairly in what ever the case
may have been.   As I write this email, Mr. Bales and his staff are currently working on some
important things that are going on with my halfway house.   I certainly put my stamp of
approval on Mr. Bales and the FBC.

Derrick L.  KY

********************************************************  

From:  MAURICE B WADE (04996035)
Date:   12/7/2010  9:25:44 AM
Subject:  RE: Re: RE: Re: Re: Thanksgiving

Message:  Good Day Ed:

I apologize for taking nearly a week to respond to your request.  The new chemo and meds
really knocked me for a loop.   I am just now able to sit up at this keyboard long enough to
finally answer your e-mail.  I've got an idea: I'm going to send you a blank e-mail
and request that you write my testimonial for me.  Mentally,  I'm just not able to put into
writing just how grateful and blessed I am to have come under your kind care-- please express
for me what I feel and sign my full name attesting to it.  Thank you so much Ed, and I
certainly hope I'm not too late to get onto your web page.  I'm from Houston, Texas.

Sincerely,  Maurice

************************************************************


From:     Mathew Wyrick (41227177)
Date:      12/4/2010  1:55:57 PM
Subject:  Federal Prison Consultants

Message:

I would like to take a moment and reflect on the accomplishments of Federal Prison
Consultants as it pertains to my case.  I live in the state of Missouri and when I was
sentenced to 63 months for 1 count of Wire Fraud I consulted with the personnel at
Federal Prison Consultants to help me through the process of my prison time.  They have been 
very beneficial to me in the aspect of helping me with my medical issues and hopefully
accomplishing even more with time.   I have had them file formal requests for me on my
behalf.  I would highly recommend this firm for future use when you get into the situation
of having to do Prison time in the BOP system.

Thank You,

Mathew W.
Missouri   


Again, I have copies of the above letters that were sent from actual clients/family members.   As you can see, Mr. Bales is there to advocate and has praise for doing so.

Thank you,

Karen S. Fernandez
Assistant Director

Federal Prison Experts, Inc.

1-888-5-PRISON

[email protected]

Im not quite sure who brought this against Ed and his company but i can tell you this.My husband was in the SHU for over a year without charges being brought against him.He was in bad need of a doctor for a preexisting condition and like anyone that has tried to help a loved one in prison had no voice. I called  federal-prison-experts to just help guide me through this maze and within a day i was contacted by a very sweet lady who listened to me and understood my hurt and fear over this. After i was told about the cost i told them it was out of my price range and she said she would have the owner Ed himself call me to help. That very night i got a call he told me of his background and that he had former wardens on staff that knew the in's and out's of the system and they could help. Again  said i cant afford this but i need to be able to talk to my husband as im having some very serious health issues.He understood he was kind and he said he would do all he could for me. The next day he sent me a letter to sign for my husbands release of information so he could start working on it for me. This man has a huge heart and its sad to see of someone who's "son" is in prison use this mans past against him. I hope when your son's released and start's his life out here he has God place more understanding and forgiving people in is life then his "mother" seems to be. Ed and his staff have been everything they said and i couldnt recommend them more and if the only  evidence you have is that he was in prison then shame on you.

I have known Mr. Bales for several years and have worked with him for a few years. I have been to both his office in Maitland and work with him most of the time at his home office,. while there are many hours that I put in a week for the company, I am beyond aware of the hours Mr. Bales puts in working for clients and on cases. Not only do I return phone calls to clients, Mr. Bales always returns telephone calls to clients. I also work with Mr. Joe Gunja. I have seen with my own eyes the positive actions that both Mr. Bales and Mr. Gunja have accomplished. I have worked with them to accomplish many things for our clients.

I have witnessed Mr. Bales help clients with little to no money, such as Mr. M. Wade who was dying of cancer, he worked at no cost to put in a Commutation of Sentence successfully, and, thankfully, Mr. Wade is in remission. He has helped another Inmate, Anthony D., who had a sentence of 24 months with time credit and went into the BOP with 17 months left on his sentence. He is graduating with time off the RDAP Program and leaving the BOP in November into Half-Way House because of Mr. Bales intervention.

We have had a case recently where an inmate's wife has had bone cancer, Mr. Gunja was able to expedite his transfer within one week. I have witnessed this with my own eyes.

While most of our clients do pay a fee, there are times when someone cannot pay or can only pay very little and Mr. Bales will assist. I work with Mr. Bales who has a heart.

I've listened to Mr. Bales tell people many times that he can't "guarantee" or "promise" an outcome, however, he does go above and beyond with his time and the hours he puts in, way beyond what a client pays for. I have many testimonials to back up what Mr. Bales has done for his clients, and I will be happy to email them to you.

Today I sent out dozens of letters regarding this deplorable situation, I asked our clients to respond by making posts to various websites where this "so-called victim" has posted negative remarks about Mr. Bales. The "real" victim is our company and Mr. Bales. I can provide the copies of the lawsuit that the negative poster filed, where the poster lost their lawsuit. I know for a fact that this was the only lawsuit ever filed against Mr. Bales our company or employees. I am more than willing to send copies showing the poster lost in a court of law. We currently had an attorney contact the poster and the other person who filed suit to remove the negative comments that they posted going back a few years. They thought the matter was dropped, however, one continues to leave vindictive comments. When we requested via our attorney that they cease one one of the ladies did, however. They both offered to remove the vindictive comments. We are in possession of their response to do so.

Should you be considering hiring one of our companies, I can provide plenty of references from past, current, inmates and very reputable attorneys that I will be happy to provide at your request.

We have positive references and feedback on the following:

http://www.bbb.org/central-florida/business-reviews/consultants-prison-and-sentencing/federal-prison-experts-in-maitland-fl-213008897

http://www.manta.com/c/mmym284/federal-prison-experts-a-division-of-federal-prison-experts-inc

http://www.facebook.com/FederalPrisonExperts#!/FederalPrisonExperts?sk=info.

I am available should you have any questions regarding Federal Prison Consultants, Inc., Federal Prison Experts, Inc. and the services we provide. I enjoy working with Mr. Bales, Mr. Gunja and staff members who put their heart into trying to make a bad situation better. Mr. Edward Bales is the President of Federal Prison Experts, Inc., and has nothing to hide. We have made positive changes in our company and will continue to do so with our clients in mind.  The links to Facebook, Manta and the BBB  clearly show that Mr. Bales is the owner and President of the main company.

Facebook     this is the link to my Facebook page for further verification of who I am and the fact that I am a real person making these posts.

I encourage anyone reading these posts to contact me for further information on a positive note about Ed Bales and the work he did for me.

Thank you,
Diane Stephens, Baton Rouge, LA

Ok, I finally figured out how to insert a link.  The link will lead to a video I made when working on behalf of some women in prison in Louisiana.

You Tube Video

Also, anyone who would like to contact me, please feel free to visit my Facebook page.  My email address is available there an I will gladly respond to you and answer any questions you may have about my positive experience with Ed Bales.

Thank you,
Diane Stephens, Baton Rouge, LA

I posted a rebuttal to the above ridiculous remark but it has yet to post.  I believe it did not post because I included a link to a You Tube video that I made regarding some advocacy work I was doing for women in prison in Louisiana.  It's very unfortunate since it would have shown that I AM a real person.  I only care because I want other readers to know that the remarks from the person who believes I a am fictional will know how totally crazy she is!

I find it so hard to believe that someone would go so far simply out of vindictive anger.  It's such a waste of time but considering it could harm innocent people, I feel compelled to let others know the truth.

Anyone who wants to see more about me is welcome to go to my Facebook page under Diane Lael Stephens.  I believe my email is listed under "info" and will gladly respond to any requests you may have regarding the work Mr. Bales did for me and my fiance`. 

I also respectfully request a retraction of the above post by Brooklyn as it is disrespectful and false!

Thank you,
Diane Stephens, Baton Rouge, LA

The following link will take you to the link for a video that I did:

http://youtu.be/2oQek2PorQ8   Just copy and paste into your browser

Thank you,

Diane Stephens, Baton Rouge

Anyone out there who needs verification as to who I am is welcome to email me at [email protected].  I will gladly respond to your email and provide any information you may require.

I made a post earlier that included a link to a YouTube video regarding some of the work I do on behalf of women prisoners in Louisiana but it hasn't shown up yet so they not let it be posted.  However, I will try again after I post this.

Thank you,

Diane Stephens, Baton Rouge, LA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oQek2PorQ8&feature=email

If you want to know more about who I am, I suggest you copy and paste the above into your web browser and watch it.

You are gravely mistaken and I am only making this post of verification in order that other innocent readers will be able to see how vindictive an angry person can get.  You have truly crossed the line indicating that I am a fictional character created in the mind of Ed Bales.  That is so asanine!

You can also find me on LinkedIn, Facebook (Diane Lael Stephens), Myspace, My Life, YouTube, etc.

I suggest you post a retraction of your most recent post.

Thank you to those who matter,
Diane Stephens, Baton Rouge, LA

Federal Prison Experts, Incorporated / Same Bluster-Same Scam 

Does Ed Bales think so little of the intelligence of "Rip-Off" readers that he actually is still trying to float this turd past them?

As is his usual response to well-deserved allegations, and this is certainly not the first time, Mr. Bales has miraculously acquired a single mysterious supporter who has nothing better to do in "Baton Rouge" (yea, right) but write back-to-back-to-back responses to defend the "honor" of Ed Bales. After reading these almost laughable kudos, we would have hoped that "D. Stephens" (yea, right) would have spent a little less time giving Bales all these trumped up (and unsupported) accolades and would have actually answered some of the hard questions. Don't bother now Ed or D. Stephens or whoever.
 
For the sake of argument, a bunch of us on Prison Talk are still confused about a few things. For example, had Mr Bales been so honest, hardworking, appreciated and wonderful, why did he find it necessary to change the name of the business to Federal Prison Experts, Inc. from Federal Prison Consultants, LLC? Why did he find it necessary to remove his name from the staff directory and from any other connection to the new company and did so almost immediately after the most recent allegations against Federal Prison Consultants, LLC a few months ago? Why did he remove his name and picture from his personal website www.FederalPrisonExperts.com? Why do we not see his name anywhere on the web in any connection to the Federal Prison Experts, Inc. website if he is the President, so trustworthy and so honest?? Why has he never responded to the earlier allegation from another poster that he is a convicted felon who was previously convicted of fraud?   

As a wife and mother, I really have better things to do than play childish games with Ed Bales. This is it for me, but unlike Ed Bales, I have enough confidence in the inteliigence and common sense of the readers here to know that they will see through Ed Bales and his ridiculous attempts to present himself as an honest businessman.  

I truly hope that researchers go further in their efforts to learn more about Ed Bales and his company before they make the decision not to call him.

I am a happy and satisfied client of Mr. Bales and I would recommend him and his entire staff to anyone who has need of his services.  It's amazing all the expertise and experience these people have, along with total professionalism.

Further research on my part has also revealed that the two lawsuits that were file against him were both won by Mr. Bales himself....not the complaining client who got angry just because things didn't go the way they anticipated.  It's sad that someone would try to ruin the career of another just because of their anger at the outcome.

I also want to say that Mr. Bales went above and beyond in his work for me, including doing more than I even paid him to do so I could never say he was a ripoff or scammer......it's just not true!

Thank you,
D Stephens - Baton Rouge, LA

You are making false allegations for no other reason than the simple fact that you are angry that your case didn't go your way.  Did you know that you can be charged for making slanderous and defamatory remarks about someone when you have no factual basis for them?

I hired Mr. Bales and his company to do some work for me and he did an excellent job...even as far as doing extra work without asking for further payment.  The fee itself was very reasonable and I had no complaint whatsoever!  Mr. Bales kept me totally informed every step of the way and also copied me with various documents he filed in the case.  There was no indication whatsoever that he was a scam artist.  I have since found that he has a highly experienced professional staff.

I will say that I too did some research before I hired him and found a few complaints but I was also able to sift through the reasons behind those complaints and I felt as if they were due to not having reached the result they wanted in their case.  That is the problem when dealing with corrections...you don't always get what you want because corrections does not always do what is the right thing to do no matter how much we believe in our particular case.  It's definitely an uphill battle and can go either way.

Since reading this and another post, I elected to do further research and I have since found that although Mr. Bales was served with two law suits, he WON both of those suits and no wrong-doing by Mr. Bales or his company was found by a court of law.

I hope that others will read this after reading your post so they can make up their own minds.

Thank you,
D. Stephens - Baton Rouge, LA

This absolutely untrue....I have hired Mr. Bales and found him to be extremely professional and diligent.  Not only that, I actually did research on him first, and although I found a few complaints such as yours, I elected to hire him and am very happy that I did.  Furthermore, I have since done more research and found that the lawsuits of which you speak have BOTH been won by Mr. Bales.  Therefore, no wrongdoing was ever shown in a court of law.

Anyone who wants to do business with Mr. Bales should feel very comfortable to do so, as well as privileged to have someone of his caliber working for them.  It's very rare to find that in this day and age.

If you research further, you will see his accolades are numerous. 

Thank you!
D. Stephens - Baton Rouge, LA

Two or three disgruntled clients does not a company make!

These allegations are simply that....allegations and unfounded.  This is my second rebuttal post regarding this issue because I am not going to stand by and allow the slandering to continue without speaking my mind.  I did much research into Ed Bales and his company prior to hiring him and I have to admit that the negativity out there cause seem a bit of concern, but after balancing it all out, I elected to hire Mr. Bales and I am very  happy that I did and totally satisfied that I did.  He did exactly as he said he would and even went so far as to do more because he knew the situation was close to my heart and he did not charge me for the extra work that was not included in the original fee. 

I think we all need to make our own evaluations based on our needs and the chance that we will prevail.  Anytime we are dealing with corrections, there are many roadblocks in the path and it takes someone like Mr. Bales and his experienced experts to travel those paths via the right connections.  Sometimes the end result may not be the one you wanted but I guarantee you this man will find that out and fight it to the end.  Not ALL cases are won and Mr. Bales would be in violation of ethics if he could make any promises or guarantees as to the outcome. 

It's very important to me that everyone understand this and I will explain why.  I served time in a state prison and ever since I've been out, I have been doing my utmost best to help those I left behind....to make their lives better and just give them hope and support.  Sometimes, that's all it takes when we know we can't do anything else.  However, when an issue arose that I had no means in which to correct, I turned to Mr. Bales and his company.  I can honestly give testimony to the fact that Mr. Bales, his staff psychologist, and other staff members worked diligently on the case.  I have no complaints whatsoever.

As for Mr. Bales making a change in his profile name on Facebook.  Let me ask you this:  If you were faced with these false allegations against your person and company, wouldn't YOU try to minimize the damage as much as possible?  If I were Ed Bales, I would file a lawsuit against this individual for intentionally trying to sabotage my career! 

Thank you,
D Stephens

Apparently, professional fraudster Ed Bales has never heard the saying, "You can't make Chicken Salad out of Chicken Sh*t." Just because he changed the name of Federal Prison Consultants, LLC to Federal Prison Experts, Inc. and then somehow conned the BBB in giving him an "A-" rating, it doesn't change the fact that he and his company are still frauds and thieves.

Still think this isn't all carefully planned??? We've been told that Ed Bales won't even use his full name and business name on social sites like Facebook instead using only his full first name and middle initial while being careful not to make any claim to any business name. What a fraud!!!!

To anyone who reads this, BE VERY CAREFUL of Federal Prison Experts, Inc. or anything else that Ed Bales is involved with. He and his companies have left a trail of victims all along the eastcoast.