Search | Prison Phone Justice

Imagine Pleading Guilty Because You Can’t Afford to Call Your Lawyer

Article • July 2, 2019 • from PLN July, 2019

Filed under: Attorneys, Telephones, Telephone Rates, Attorney Calls

Imagine Pleading Guilty Because You Can’t Afford to Call Your Lawyer by Victoria Law by Victoria Law, Truthout Imagine paying $20.12 for a 15-minute phone call. That’s how much a call from the Jennings Adult Correctional Facility in Missouri costs. In 2013, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) set rate caps …

Major Prison Telecom Merger Canceled; Victory for Campaign for Prison Phone Justice!

Article • May 3, 2019 • from PLN May, 2019

Filed under: Private Prisons, Telephones, Telephone Rates

industry, but more needs to be done when just two companies, Securus and Global Tel*Link, control around 80% of the detention facility telephone lines,” said HRDC executive director Paul Wright. &ldquo ...

Prison Policy Initiative Issues Report on State of Prison Phone Justice

Article • May 3, 2019 • from PLN May, 2019

Filed under: Statistics/Trends, Telephones, Telephone Access, Telephone Rates, Attorney Calls

Prison Policy Initiative Issues Report on State of Prison Phone Justice by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke  On February 11, 2019, the non-profit Prison Policy Initiative (PPI) issued a report on the “State of Phone Justice,” noting progress on reducing state prison phone rates but fewer reforms in local jails, …

Cell Phones Sold in Commissary at South Carolina Jail

Article • May 3, 2019 • from PLN May, 2019

Filed under: Commissary, Cell Phone Access

Cell Phones Sold in Commissary at South Carolina Jail by Scott Grammer by Scott Grammer There is a surprising item for sale in the commissary at the Union County Jail in South Carolina: cell phones. The $100 phones can be used to text and make calls between the hours of …

Federal Circuit Upholds BOP Guard’s Termination Despite 1,265-Day Delay

Article • April 22, 2019

Filed under: Telephones, Guards/Staff, Employee Litigation, Guard Unions, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights

Federal Circuit Upholds BOP Guard’s Termination Despite 1,265-Day Delay by Mark Wilson by Mark Wilson The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld the termination of a federal prison guard, finding that he waived any claim of prejudice from a 1,265-day delay between commencement of the investigation …

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 …

Securus Files Suit Alleging FDOC Improperly Entered into Prison Phone Contract

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

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

be conducive to obtaining the $150 million in value-added services the department has attempted to obtain through the inmate telephone contract, such increases do not assist with – and actually thwart ...

Free Phone Calls for Juvenile Offenders Jailed in Memphis, Tennessee

Article • March 5, 2019 • from PLN March, 2019

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Access, Juveniles

Free Phone Calls for Juvenile Offenders Jailed in Memphis, Tennessee by Kevin W. Bliss by Kevin Bliss In November 2018, Shelby County, Tennessee – which includes the City of Memphis – renegotiated its contract with Global Tel*Link (GTL), the phone service provider for around 5,000 prisoners at the county’s four …

Imagine Pleading Guilty Because You Can’t Afford to Call Your Lawyer

Article • February 19, 2019

Filed under: Jail Specific, Money/Property, Telephone Rates, First Amendment, rights

Imagine Pleading Guilty Because You Can’t Afford to Call Your Lawyer by Victoria Law By Victoria Law, Truthout Imagine paying $20.12 for a 15-minute phone call. That’s how much a call from the Jennings Adult Correctional Facility in Missouri costs. In 2013, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) set price caps …

Texas Prison System Cuts Phone Rates Over 75 Percent; Rates Drop in Other States, Too

Article • February 6, 2019 • from PLN February, 2019

Filed under: Telephone Rates

for attorney calls, and collected almost $1.5 million a year in “commission” kickbacks. The new law requires the state’s Jail Standards Board to establish criteria to prohibit such excessive ...

New York City Council Passes Ordinance to Make All Jail Phone Calls Free

Article • December 5, 2018 • from PLN December, 2018

Filed under: Telephone Rates

. The legislation passed by the City Council states: “The city shall provide telephone services to individuals within the custody of the department in city correctional facilities at no cost to the individuals ...

New Jersey Federal Court Certifies Class-Action Suit Against Global*Tel Link

Article • December 5, 2018 • from PLN December, 2018

Filed under: Class Certification, Telephone Rates

purchased from telecom providers for as little as $.00018 per minute.... Because GTL’s contracts with the DOC and counties were exclusive, Plaintiffs – unlike normal telephone users – could ...

Washington State: Jail Phone Rates Increase as Video Replaces In-Person Visits

Article • October 12, 2018 • from PLN October, 2018

Filed under: Telephone Rates, Visiting, Video Visitation

to visit.” However, Benton County’s decision to end face-to-face visits came under fire from the American Bar Association (ABA). The ABA, the chief professional organization for attorneys, called ...

Despite Lack of FCC Action, States Can Still Make Prison and Jail Calls Affordable

Article • September 4, 2018 • from PLN September, 2018

Filed under: Telephone Rates

of Bristol County, Massachusetts and Securus Technologies, Inc. The suit seeks to “end an illegal kickback scheme orchestrated by the Defendants that has nearly doubled the cost of telephone calls made ...

Criticism of Commission-based Phone Contract at Pennsylvania County Prison

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

Filed under: Telephone Rates

*Link (GTL), one of the nation’s largest prison and jail telephone service providers, has contracted with the York County Prison under a “commission” arrangement that provides kickbacks ...

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 …

Alaska Jail Recorded Attorney-client Conversations for Four Years

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

Filed under: Jail Misconduct, Attorney Client, Attorney Calls, Telephone Monitoring

Alaska Jail Recorded Attorney-client Conversations for Four Years by Monte McCoin by Monte McCoin On January 15, 2018, the Anchorage Daily News reported that, from 2012 to 2016, confidential conversations between criminal defendants and their attorneys were routinely recorded by a long-abandoned audio monitoring system in a visitation room at …

Federal Judge Dismisses Class-action Suits Over Jail Phone Rates, Commissions

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

Filed under: Telephone Rates

governments as defendants and, according to the court, “the Ninth Circuit has not recognized an independent right to telephone access for inmates” that could be impeded by government action. Even ...

The Prison Phone Industry Has Quietly Become Even More of a Duopoly

Article • July 1, 2018 • from PLN July, 2018

Filed under: Statistics/Trends, Telephone Rates

Securus’ telephone system at his jail to obtain location data on cell phone customers without a court order. Put another way, Securus’ platform can be abused by law enforcement officials to spy ...

Lawsuits Filed, Renewed Push to Block Cell Phones After Deadly South Carolina Prison Riot

Article • July 1, 2018 • from PLN July, 2018

Filed under: Prison Rebellion, Cell Phone Access

Lawsuits Filed, Renewed Push to Block Cell Phones After Deadly South Carolina Prison Riot by Steve Horn by Steve Horn In the two months following an April 15, 2018 riot at the Lee Correctional Institution in Bishopville, South Carolina that left seven prisoners dead and at least 22 injured, the …