Saturday, March 28, 2009

Commentary - Prisoner use of cell phones

Cell phones are illegal for use in prisons.  That may be true, but the fact is that the illegal use of cell phones within prison compounds is much more common than the public would think.  Today, I received a call from an inmate requesting assistance with a problem on his LG phone on the AT&T network. He identified himself as an inmate using an illegal phone. Apparently, he called us since we presumably have some knowledge about such things and he needed an assist.

I never got the callers name, but I can assume that he was one of the thousands of inmates all over the USA who use illegal cell phones smuggled in mostly by guards and service vendors to the prison. The majority of these prisoners use illegal phones as a viable alternative to prison pay phones which can cost their families up to four dollars a minute.  If these were the only users, it might be OK to ignore the issue, but a small percentage of the inmates use their cell phones to continue conducting their illegal affairs from inside the prison.  Such is the case of an inmate who ordered the execution of a guard from his illegal cell phone.  Regrettably, the execution was successful.  

As a result of such activities, it is necessary to stop the use of illegal phones inside correctional facilities.  There are three ways to combat the problem - phone sniffing dogs, illegal cell phone jammers (which could result in FCC fines of up to $16,000 per day), and cell phone detectors. There are three suppliers of cell phone detectors.  Two are very expensive and do not report abuse in real time.  The third is the one we offer!  You can read more about this incredible technology at www.falcondirect.com/610.  Check out the 610 system.  It could save a life! For additional information, please give us a call at 295.854.2611.