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Free Calls in Massachusetts Lead to  Defunded Prison Programs

Article • July 15, 2025 • from PLN July, 2025

Filed under: Telephone Access, Telephone Rates, Private Phone Contractors

Free Calls in Massachusetts Lead to Defunded Prison Programs by In December 2023, Massachusetts became the fifth state to provide free phone calls in its prisons and the first in all local jails. Video calling and e-messaging were also made available at no cost [See: PLN, Mar. 2024, p. 15]. …

Massachusetts Makes Calls Free From Prisons and Jails

Article • May 1, 2024 • from PLN May, 2024

Filed under: Telephone Rates

Massachusetts Makes Calls Free From Prisons and Jails by Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey (D) signed H. 1796 on November 15, 2023, making hers the fifth state in the nation to eliminate fees for prison and jail phone calls. When the law took effect on December 1, 2023, the state joined Connecticut, …

Massachusetts Becomes the Fifth State to Make Prison Phone Calls Free

Article • March 1, 2024 • from PLN March, 2024

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Access, Private Phone Contractors

Massachusetts Becomes the Fifth State to Make Prison Phone Calls Free by Until December 1, 2023, Massachusetts prisoners and their families paid 12 cents per minute for phone calls, 14 cents in jails, though the first 10 minutes there every month were free. That added up to about $25 million …

All Massachusetts Jails to Provide Prisoners Ten Free Minutes of Phone Calls Per Week and Cap Charges on Additional Minutes at 14 Cents

Article • November 1, 2021 • from PLN November, 2021

Filed under: Telephone Rates

by State Senator Cynthia Creem and Representative Chynah Tyler, which would require the provision of free telephone calls to people incarcerated in the state’s jails and prisons. In promoting the bill ...

Massachusetts Jail Phone Cost Reductions Under Attack

Article • November 1, 2020 • from PLN November, 2020

Filed under: Telephone Rates

Evangelidis’ jail holds mental health, education, substance abuse and music programs. These programs are funded through telephone revenue “commissions” paid to Cocchi by ICSolutions ...

Lawsuit Challenging Phone Kickbacks at Massachusetts Jail Survives Motion to Dismiss

Article • April 2, 2019 • from PLN April, 2019

Filed under: Telephone Rates

Lawsuit Challenging Phone Kickbacks at Massachusetts Jail Survives Motion to Dismiss by In December 2018, a Massachusetts federal district court refused to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the cost of phone calls made by prisoners at the Bristol County House of Correction (BCHC). [See: PLN, Sept. 2018, p.36]. Before the court …

Massachusetts DOC commissions 2017

Kickback publication • January 28, 2019

Filed under: Telephones

request dated January 7, 2019 seeking the following records: "Documents detailing all payments received by the Massachusetts Department of Correction from any telephone service provider, or on behalf of any ...

Massachusetts DOC - Securus rates 2018-2023

Kickback publication • December 20, 2018

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Rates

Massachusetts DOC - Securus rates 2018-2023 Dennis J. Reinhold Senior Vice President and General Counsel March 1, 2018 Via Email ' Nilsa Morales Director of Fiscal Affairs Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security 1 Ashburton Place - Room 213 3 Boston, Massachusetts 02108 Re: Securus Technologies Dear Ms. …

Massachusetts DOC - Securus contract 2018-2023

Kickback publication • December 20, 2018

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Access, Telephone Monitoring

Massachusetts DOC - Securus contract 2018-2023 COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS - STANDARD CONTRACT FORM This form is jointly issued and published by the Executive Office for Administration and Finance (ANFl. the Office of the Comptroller (CTR) and the Operational Services Division (OSD) as the default contract for all Commonwealth Departments when …

Massachusetts County Faces Lawsuit Over Phone Fee Kickbacks

Article • August 8, 2018 • from PLN August, 2018

Filed under: Telephone Rates

Massachusetts County Faces Lawsuit Over Phone Fee Kickbacks by Monte McCoin by Monte McCoin On May 2, 2018, attorneys with Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts, the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), the Legal Services Center at Harvard Law School and the law firm of Bailey & Glasser LLP filed a …

Pearson et. al. v. Hodgson and Securus Technologies Inc., phone kickback scheme complaint, 2018

Brief • May 2, 2018

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Access, Telephone Rates, Attorney Calls, Mental Health, Family

. The Plaintiffs seek to end an illegal kickback scheme orchestrated by the Defendants that has nearly doubled the cost of telephone calls made from Bristol County correctional facilities - causing harm to prisoners ...

Mississippi Attorney General Settles with Third Company in Epps Bribery Scandal

Article • March 6, 2018 • from PLN March, 2018

Filed under: Private Prisons, Attorneys General, Telephones

Mississippi Attorney General Settles with Third Company in Epps Bribery Scandal by Monte McCoin by Monte McCoin PLN has previously covered the continuing fallout from a massive bribery scandal involving former Mississippi DOC Commissioner Christopher B. Epps, including RICO lawsuits filed by Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood against several companies …

Massachusetts Kickbacks as of FY2015

Kickback publication • April 26, 2017

Filed under: Telephones

Massachusetts Kickbacks as of FY2015

Commonwealth Depatment of Telecommunications and Capble, MA, Address List, Peititon of Recipients, 2016

Brief • November 1, 2016

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Monitoring, Cell Phone Access

and Cable 1000 Washington Street, 8th fl. Suite 820, Boston MA 02118-6500 Telephone: 617-305-3580 Fax: 617-988-8267 Email: dtc.efiling@state.ma.us Sean Carroll Hearing Officer Department ...

Global Tel Link v. Federal Communications Commission and United States of America, DC, Amicus Brief for States of MN, IL, MA, NM, NY, WA, and DC, Telephone Contact During Incarceration, 2016

Brief • September 19, 2016

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Access, Telephone Rates, Family

. ................................................................. 8 C. The FCC’s Order Also Supports Improved Outcomes For Offenders’ Families And Children. ..................................................... 11 IMPLEMENTATION OF REASONABLE TELEPHONE RATES ...

Massachusetts Prisoners Involved in Reform Efforts Transferred, Held in Solitary

Article • September 2, 2016 • from PLN September, 2016

Filed under: Transfers, Retaliatory Transfers, Retaliation for Organizing, Retaliatory Segregation, Telephone Access, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Visiting

Massachusetts Prisoners Involved in Reform Efforts Transferred, Held in Solitary by Christopher Zoukis Three Massachusetts state prisoners have been placed in segregation in apparent retaliation for their prison reform activism. Timothy Muise, Shawn Fisher and Steven James, all incarcerated at the medium-security prison MCI Shirley, were taken from their cells …

Petitioners' Opposition to Securus Technologies' Request to be Removed from the Service List in DTC 11-16, Prisoners' Legal Services of Massachusetts, 2016

Brief • August 19, 2016

Filed under: Telephones, Media

Petitioners' Opposition to Securus Technologies' Request to be Removed from the Service List in DTC 11-16, Prisoners' Legal Services of Massachusetts, 2016

MA DOC ICS Rates effective April 2016

Kickback publication • July 7, 2016

Filed under: Telephone Rates

MA DOC ICS Rates effective April 2016 OFFICIAL NOTICE Massachusetts Department of Correction Inmate Calling Rates New Call rates are effective on April 1st, 2016. The rates do not include applicable federal, state or local taxes or regulatory fees. All Calls are a flat Per Minute Rate Instate calls: ……… …

DTC, MA, Interlocutory Order, telephone rates, 2016

Brief • June 14, 2016

Filed under: Telephone Rates

DTC, MA, Interlocutory Order, telephone rates, 2016 COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND CABLE D.T.C. 11-16 June 14, 2016 Petition of Recipients of Collect Calls from ...

Petition of ICS Users to Investigate Tariffs Filed by ICS Providers, MA, 2016

Brief • June 10, 2016

Filed under: Telephone Access, Telephone Rates, Attorney Calls

to pay 50 percent commissions. Facilitating telephone access is no more than a tiny portion of any Correctional Officers' duties and is appropriately part of an Officer's job — just as supervising ...