For Stockton boosters, it’s not exactly the publicity they’d prefer.
“San Joaquin County, California — a hotbed of gang activity and violent crime,” a voice-over intones during the opening moments of “120 Hours Behind Bars.” The documentary-style TV series offers what producers say is an unfiltered look inside the toughest jails in the country.
The San Joaquin County Jail was the focus of episode 8, which aired Monday night on Discovery Channel.
The TV show features interviews with inmates and guards, and gritty moments like takedowns, surprise cell inspections and drug overdoses over the course of five days.
The San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office, which runs the sprawling jail complex in French Camp, has been promoting the latest episode on social media.
The show introduces Sheriff Patrick Withrow as he is driving to the jail, his white cowboy hat perched atop the cruiser’s dashboard.
He explains that the area is a rough patch of California. The county “is a huge drug corridor, all the way from Mexico on through to the Canadian border,” Withrow says.
“All these freeways feed right into San Joaquin County, so the local gangs have their territory down here.” Adding to the mix, he says, “There’s a lot of shootings and robberies and drugs.”
Though not considered a news documentary, “120 Hours Behind Bars” does provide a rare look inside the 1,200-inmate San Joaquin County Jail, which appears modern and clean — except for penciled graffiti on cell walls.
Some of the inmates are remarkably candid onscreen about what landed them behind bars.
Rudolph Delsie, who has been in the jail for three years, talks about trying to avoid a police officer at a gas station while he was in possession of a gun and then going on the lam, followed by an eventual standoff with law enforcement. He said he’s eager to leave the jail.
“I want to change,” said Delsie, who is currently being held without bail. “I want another shot at life.”
One of the more interesting interviews is with Scott Sherman, a former Stockton real estate broker convicted of murdering a man in Lodi while high on alcohol and psilocybin, or magic mushrooms. Sherman said life in the local jail was hard at first.
“The first 30 days was really difficult. It’s a bunch of people you don’t know — a lot of drug addicts,” Sherman said. He said that while in the jail, he was challenged to fights several times and almost was assaulted in his cell by another inmate, but guards interceded.
“The fact that the guards are here within seconds, if not minutes for safety, that’s a good feeling,” said Sherman, who is now housed at Soledad State Prison after being sentenced to 50 years to life in the shooting death of Felix Makinano.
“120 Hours Behind Bars” emphasizes the stark fact that there is no sugarcoating jail life.
“It gets really lonely, depressing in here. Makes you feel worthless,” said Danielle Milichichi, who was arrested last year on homicide charges.
The TV show, and the San Joaquin County Jail episode, are available for streaming on select platforms.