Tablets have been instrumental in keeping the relationship between a prisoner and the family alive.
FREMONT, CA: Nearly a decade after Apple had introduced the iPad, specially designed tablets are reaching many prisoners' lives in state and county lock-ups around the United States. In the past year, at least 19 states have made tablets available to the inmates, saying they reduced violence while providing education and job training.
The tablets that are tamper-proof and non-accessible to the internet allow the inmates to exchange emails with the people on an approved list of contacts. But few advocacy groups say that their charges are too high and fear they might become used to replace family visits.
In some states, companies provide the tablets free of cost. But in most cases, inmates have to pay for the services they use, which includes email, video calls, music, and downloads of games, movies, and books from a predefined selection. They can additionally file prison grievances, access a law library, or even take job training courses.
Every message is limited in length and screened for security to prevent unauthorized contact with the outside world.
About 30 states that they offer tablets to all the prisoners, along with many county jails. Some say the computers keep the inmates occupied, lowering the risk of fighting, while email and video-calling cut the hiring staff's cost to sort mail or screen visitors.
Tablets are particularly useful for inmates whose families are unable to travel to visit them. According to studies from an institute, family contact decreases the chance inmates will commit crimes after being released.
Sending email costs between 40 to 50 cents in many states. In New York, it costs 35 cents, similar to three and a half hours of work for New York inmates, according to the data of 2017 from the nonprofit Prison Policy Initiative.
