California: Farewell to Club Fed

Whites were never required for tennis. But the fact that there was a court and other such amenities, along with a clientele of celebrity convicts like Wall Street finagler Ivan Boesky and Watergate culprit H.R. Haldeman, earned California’s Lompoc Federal Prison Camp a reputation as a country club. Set on 42 campus-like acres, Club Fed, as it was called, had neither walls nor armed guards. Its 650 or so mostly white-collar prisoners rose at 6 a.m. to pancakes or oatmeal and worked until 3:30, earning 11 cents to 42 cents an hour (Boesky cleaned the visiting room). Then they were free to jog, play softball, watch TV, read the papers or bowl on the lawn.

But the good old days are no more. With other federal prisons overflowing, Lompoc is now a low-security facility, complete with a 12-ft.-high double fence topped by razor wire. At best, the new Lompoc rates barely one star.