Rules and Regulations Origins and reasons? Where can I research this information?.

Most I can guess at because they make good sense and are needed rules.
Such as street clothes and shoes not allowed. Accelerate the peer pressure of our children to compete to dress in designer name brands. Having something that someone else wants usually causes the ones that don't have to take. Then the safety issues of a possible escapee to easily blend into the population.

Cash money...many problems there with inmates having available cash. That one I understand.

Approved phone list. A good Safety rule. I wouldn't want uninvited phone calls to my house or that of a victim.

Items such as books, medicine, food, or whatever. Obviously someone smuggled in weapons or drugs. Just last month in Ardmore Ok. A lawyer, who's son was in prison hid a hacksaw blade in her son's Bible.

Approved visitors and Contact visits......same reasons as above plus the danger of hostages, or violence. I have read about that happening at least once. Just takes one person to ruin things for everyone!

But I don't understand about the prohibited use of calling cards and 800 numbers. Why? How did this hurt or take advantage of anyone?

I don't understand why postage stamps are prohibited If they are sent in by family or friends. What could you do with a postage stamp?

The postage stamp thing is in some prisons for the same reason stickers aren't allowed... for concerns about acid (LSD) being smuggled in that way.... But as for the calling card/phone issue.... you got me!! Seems to me is it just to make OUR lives more difficult?!? I do think that some of the phone procedures in IL have to do wtih making inmates calls easier to track..... I would be curious if others have been told some reason behind this insanity.... :)

Florida will not explain why they do not allow 800#'s or calling card so I kind of gave up on that one. But as far as stamps go, here's how backwards the DOC works here... you are allowed to send an inmate one book of stamps per month. However if you send any stickers or put any on the envelope the mail will be rejected. They stated this is because people dip stickers in LSD or put black tar heroine on the backs of them. Now couldn't I do that to stamps if I knew how to do it to a sticker? I mean the stamps are stickers too.
Sometimes the rules make sense and I understand where they are comming from for saftey issues but at other times I'm baffled.
Michelle

I absolutely agree with so many of the rules, but some of them, I swear, they just sit around and dream up petty ones. Here's one of my all time favorite "stupid rules" in South Dakota:
"A visitor may embrace the inmate at the beginning and at the conclusion of the visit. An inmate and his spouse or female friend CANNOT kiss on the lips during a visit. An inmate may embrace and briefly kiss his spouse or female friend on the cheek. Unless otherwise directed, inmates are allowed to kiss other immediate family members on the lips. Regardless of the situation that applies, the kiss and/or embrace with any visitor(s) will be brief and can only take place at the beginning and at the conclusion of the visit."

Kiss other immediate family members on the lips... that's really too much...

As for the phones, the prisons make huge profits off of the phone deals. It's a kickback. If the inmates have access to 800 numbers or phone cards, then the prison doesn't get their share. Check out your state's budgets. They should have it itemized just how much they expect to make in the upcoming fiscal year off of the phone calls from inmates. That, and the commissary...it's gonna cost us $700 for my husband to get a 13" Goldstar color TV from their commissary. That's the only place he can buy it from. I believe they retail at Target or Kmart for about $89.00.

Kandi

Cant this whole thing have attention brought to it and blow it out of the water..we should band together and try and change things!

Amelia,
I agree, why should the tax payer (us) be penialized by these phone calls. We should ban together, this profit making off phone calls should be illegal. Maybe we should, as you suggest, ban together and fight it. The mood I'm in I'll go all the way to Washington! Let me know if you have any ideas.
Michelle

The rules all boil down to one major thing for the prison system. There own benifit. Not to mention to further punish the inmates and there families. Like we are not going through enough already.

Let's just add a few rediculous rules and see what happens.

I am thinking about starting a petition about the abuse on inmate families through prison collect calls...not sure where to start but any suggestions would be appreciated..let's Do something!!!

I am not sure what can be done about it. That is a system set up a privalege to the inmates if you buck them they may just take it away. There is not rule stating that they have to provide the phone system.

Or they would tell them not to use it. I know that in CA if you have a problem with it they just don't let you use it anymore. Remember when they went to prison they lost some of the priviagles that we do not reconize as a priviagle i.e., phone calls and not having to take a tv vote, privacy in the shower and all the other stuff.

In texas they would probably just take the phone out Period. so make sure you do alot of research and fully understand what a petition against the system can do. Just some friendly advice not discouragement.

Oklahoma Department of Corrections is moving in the right directions on the collect phone call problems. Someone must have objected to have a change made. So it is possible.
to change some bad policies.

Check out the the new legislation:
Oklahoma Board of Corrections
Inmate Telephone Commission Resolution

January 25, 2001

It is the resolution of the Oklahoma Board of Corrections that the Department of Corrections negotiate with the vendors for inmate telephone service the following changes to current contracts that may result in a reduced cost for telephone service to inmates and their families:

That on or about July 1, 2001 that all inmate phone service be provided through a pre-paid phone plan;

That during Fiscal Year 2002 that the Department of Corrections realize in inmate telephone commission income equal to the personnel cost for monitoring and maintaining this system.

It is also resolved that the Department of Corrections contact the Governor of the State of Oklahoma to request an exemption to not apply to inmate use pay telephones in the Executive Order requiring the State of Oklahoma to earn income from pay telephones in state owned buildings.

Has anyone tried using calling cards? I thought I read somewhere that someone just listed the number and pin in a letter and their loved one tried it and it worked? Was it on this site that I saw that? Then I heard that if the calling card was thru the local phone service vs one that you can buy anywhere that it would work. Hmmm maybe I'll try to get one and see what happens.

I'll let you know for sure if it works! Anything to stop paying $2.95 a phone call for up to 30 minutes (no matter how long ur call is u get charged the $2.95...found that out the hard way!!)

Peach, I think I read that somewhere. The person that it worked for was able to use Operater assisted calls and had the operator dial the 800 calling card code.

I have another question. My friend is a law clerk and is filing his own appeals. He said he is not allowed to have carbon paper which he uses to make three copies of all the legal documnets he needs to mail. Why is carbon paper forbidden?
What bad can they do with it?

As far as dipping stamps in LSD or what ever...... couldn't a person with those means dip part of a letter or envelope in it?

Don't know about anywhere else, but NC does not allow calling cards, 800 numbers or any other means of calling other than collect from a set up pay phone in the units.

The inmates are not allowed to use any other phone in the unit. Even if their family lives in a local phone area.

I live 5 miles from my son, it costs $1.05 for him to call instead of the 25 cent it should cost.

Also, my work is 17 miles away, it costs $3.25 for him to call there.

The reason they do this is the Evercom Phone System which is set up by the DOC. DOC makes money on these phone calls.

If you notice, you will not be billed by AT&T or SPRINT or any other major carrier. Your bill will say some Prison Billing Service. There is a much higher charge for these calls than a regular long distance company. They have to make money some way.

Donna

On the carbon paper issue... part of the concern is that inmates will be able to "duplicate" official forms/ documentation.... That was the reason I was told when I worked at a prison... Frustrating because I know many times it is hard for inmates to get copies made as well....

I get phonecalls from Sussex II (VA) with a calling card. so write down the numbers and pin and send it to the prisoner, he has to ask the operator to use the calling card. I haven't heard of anybody else for who it worked?

Amelia, on the petition, you can start an online petition on www.petition.com

I agree that for issues like this, we should and have to bound together to make a change. Form a firm block they can't get through nor around. let's kick some ass :D

These call charges are insane. I live in Australia and my friend who's in a prison in Georgia, calls me often and he pays $15.00 for 15 minutes! But if I could call him or get a pre paid to him it would cost $5.00 for an hour! I think one way you could get some changes happening over there is to start voting and letting the people running for office know that unless they are willing to look at some changes in the way the prisons are run, they won't be getting your vote. Sounds simple, I know, but think about it? 2 million people incarcerated in U.S. prisons , they all have families, wives parents btothers and sisters. That's a lot of voting power! Over here voting is compulsory and prisoners have to vote too. One more thing, for an insight into why prisons are the way they are read The Perpetual Prisoner Machine by Joel Dyer. Scary stuff! L O L

I heard something about certain prisoners that may be allowed to call with a calling card. Darrell got some trouble from a CO who told him he was not approved to use a phone card. but they do nothing about it.

anybody knows the rules to be allowed to use a phone card?

My friend said that wouldn't fly at his facility.He has to make the calls collect and he also has to use a pin each time he picks up the phone. I'm usually looking at 11$ per half hour. I read one article that said a phone co. employee remembers being told to "be nice to inmates. They are your livelihood" or something to that effect. I wonder how well a boycott would go over?

well, somewhere in the thread about the phone scams, I posted a little topic about families of inmates suiing the phone company for the enormous bills. This was in New Mexico. A friend who's in prison there sent the article to me