Update (4/14): The DOJ just announced that it will require Federal Bureau of Prison halfway houses to boost services for inmates prior to release. The new rules also instruct federal work release facilities to provide cell phone access in order to help inmates seek employment opportunities. This blog post written by Seth Ferranti, a Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate, provides an inside view of the problem of contraband cell phones in federal prison. As we […]
wireless phones
5 posts
This news video discusses the use of a cell phone-sniffing dog, appropriately named, “Sprint”, to find smuggled contraband cell phones in Oregon prisons. The video includes a demonstration of Sprint’s skills at the Santiam Correctional Institution in Salem. Within seconds of the start of the demonstration, Sprint honed in on the scent of a cell phone hidden under an inmate’s pillow. According to the report, “High-end electronics such as cell phones have a unique odor. […]
The main source of contraband cell phones in prison is the prison staff, including guards. They smuggle cell phones because the demand for wireless phones is so high that they can charge as much as $1000 per phone. This officer only received probation after being caught smuggling two cell phones. The threat of as many as three years in prison did not dissuade him from bringing contraband cell phones into his jail. A former corrections […]
Contraband cell phones in prison are on a par with drugs in terms of the ability to corrupt guards. Prison guards who smuggle contraband cell phones into jails do so because of the high price placed on smuggled wireless phones. Reducing the contraband value of cell phones by offering a secure prison cell phone service minimizes the temptation to smuggle in the first place. The Fulton County Sheriff expects more arrests of his staff before […]
This news item highlights the corrosive effects the demand for contraband prison cell phones has on prison guards and other prison employees. Because the demand for illegal cell phones is so high, guards are paid to smuggle the phones into the jails. The demand for contraband prison cell phones would be significantly lessened by the introduction of secure prison cell phones such as those offered by meshDETECT. A former state correction officer from Avenel pleaded […]