I never wanted a tattoo but always said to myself \"I guess if I ever did get one it would be in prison,because at that point who cares?\"
The crazy part is I said this long before I actually ended up in prison or even had any idea I'd end up in one.
I came close to getting one in prison.I was good friends with a guy in my unit who was really good at it and offered to do mine for free.He was also very clean,safe and hygienic about it.
But I could never decide what I wanted and the risks just concerned me.
Also,they used guitar strings for needles.Imagine how much worse than hurts than a regular tattoo needle.
But the main reason not to get a tattoo in prison is prison is full of people with diseases including HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis-C.There's also a risk of getting an infection.I did time with a guy named Chris who got one on his arm from a tattoo.The entire thing swelled up and filled with pus.He eventually had to go to medical and they said it was \"spider bite\" and gave him antibiotics as they always do until it ruptured and they put him in the hole.
There's also the fact that while there's some super talented tattoo artists in prison,I've seen some tattoos turn out terrible.A buddy of mine Ben wanted to get a tattoo of Heath Ledger's Joker on his arm but it came out looking more like a zombie version of Anne Frank.We'd always give him such a hard time about it.
The final reason is it's against the rules and they can come down pretty hard on you for it including taking away good time credit which will make your sentence longer.