When I was in the Jarheads a couple of thousand years ago the old salts would tell me of redline prisons. Apparently these places made the brig look  like a day spa. Beating were given out  just to go to the head. Im sure he embelished the story exponetially but I was a young punk at the time. Anybody heard /experienced them? If you experienced on you must really be ancient.

My father served in the Marine Corps from 1968-1972 and during this time or after my mom mentioned something about him being in that type of prison for something. Apparently they were no fun, beatings, no food, firehose stuff like that. My father has never said anything about it but then again I have not asked him about it. From what I know some senator found out about them and had them shut down. This is all second hand information I did not arrive on this earth until 1985.

I know a bit about them.
Redline Prison and Motivational Platoon are nicknames for the Navy/Marine Correctional Custody Units (CCU).
They had/have a red line down the middle of the passageway and a yellow line on either side. Prisoners were only able to travel in the passageways on the red line. To step off was an attempted escape and you got your ass kicked.
To pass another prisoner they had to meet, take one step to the right, onto to the yellow line, forward two steps then one step to the left back onto the red line.





http://www.nsa-norva.navy.mil/navalbrignorfolk/index.html
 

From google:

I've heard some stories from some old salts about CCU when I was a young Marine.  I heard it made boot camp look like a garden party.  There was a CCU unit on Okinawa when I was there in 1988 - 1989.  One of my Lance Corporals was sent to it for a two week visit.  He was a changed man when he came back.  He had absolutely no desire to go back.

"Red Line Brigs"

They were pretty bad.  Had them on Marine bases and aboard Naval ships with Marine Detachments.

Glad they got rid of them before I was on Sea Duty...and before I did my "Three Days Bread and Water"

On the deck there would be red lines painted.
Cross the red line without permission and get your ass whipped.  
Ask permission...get your ass whipped.

As I understand it,  from my Dad(Old Corps),  the Red Line brigs were as bad as the CO wanted them. So not all RLB's were the same.
And the RLB's aboard ship were the worst.

My best friend did a month CCU on Okinawa in '87...same results.  Picked up Cpl. 2 months later

I was a chaser at the Navy Brig in Norfolk, VA back in 1960.  It was a Red Line Brig and run by the Marines.  There was a simple way to avoid the unplesentness of a Red Line Brig.  Do what you're told.  The only prisoner that I saw getting beat were the guys that wanted to show the Guards how tough they were.  That attitude seldom lasted more than a day or so.  Brigs were tougher then but Service was also tougher back then.  Heck, City jails were tougher back then.

I bet if our prisons were like this they would be mostly empty.

hahah the classic "Do it, do it nooowwwwww"

I served in USS Yorktown '66-'67.  She had an old fashioned Red Line Brig.  It was run by the Marines in the MarDet.  They were a tough bunch.  At certain times during the day, the Chasers could be heard sounding off, "Make Way, Prisoner!".  Woe be unto you if you failed to move aside as they passed.  The brig rats would knock you on your ass.  Once I was in the chow line and they approached.  I was near the head of the line, and new onboard.  I didn't realize that the head belonged to the rats.  They marched up in step, did their obligator hard left face and SLAMMED me into the bulkhead.  The chaser growled something and the little light came on in my head!

Fast Reverse about a year:  During my "A" school, we had a real "tough guy" in the class.  He was from some tough neighborhood in the East...Philly, IIRC, and always ready for a drawdown....just lookin' for a fight.  We've all seen the type.  Anyway, after school, we all went our separate ways.   One day, I thought I saw him in the "rat line".  He looked very different though...no hair and following orders very well.

Anyway...one day he showed up in our shop...since we were all the same rate.  Sure enough it had been him in the rat line.  He was one quiet, humble dude.  Turns out he was assigned to one of our escort destroyers.  When we were in Hong Kong, he came back to the ship drunk and punched the MAA out.  He got 30 days in the gentle clutches of our Marines for that.  When he arrived in our redline brig, he tried to play Rocky Balboa with the guards.  He challenged one.  Problem for him was that there were a lot more than one.  He lost.  After that...well, he became a model prisoner.  He also said he was NEVER going back there...EVER.

One day in our home port of Long Beach, a prisoner jumped off of the flight deck.  He'd was on his 2nd or 3rd tour in the jail and just lost it.  We fished him out of the water and the entire MarDet spent the rest of the entire day marching in the parking lot for "letting" the rat escape.

Once on deployment a rat jumped overboard.  He got sucked into the port screw.  Shark food.

I was very afraid of that brig.  I never did anything risky that might have resulted in disciplinary action against me.  You could die in there without consequence.