Reviewing some pros and cons as prisons widely embrace electronic tablets

Law360 has this lengthy new piece, headlined “Electronic Tablets Allow Inmates To Connect — With A Cost,” which provides an interesting perspective on how a new technology is being used in prisons. I recommend the full piece, and here are a few excerpts:

Corrections officials say the tablets keep drugs out of facilities, make it easier for inmates to connect with family, and offer access to far more books and entertainment options.  But prisoner advocates warn that the technology makes it easier for inmates to be surveiled while cutting them further off from the outside world.  And it ensures that prison telecom companies — and sometimes corrections departments — keep making money.

“There do seem to be benefits to tablets. I wouldn’t advocate eliminating them altogether, especially because incarcerated individuals have expressed a desire to have and keep tablets,” said University of California at Davis School of Law professor Nila Bala. “On the flip side, tablets can also be used as an excuse to cancel in-person programming and classes, because, ‘Hey, it’s on your tablet now.'”

The use of electronic tablets behind bars is skyrocketing. Just 12 state prison systems offered the tablets to inmates in 2019. By late 2024, at least 48 states were already employing or introducing the technology, with just two companies — Securus Technologies, which owns JPay Inc., and Global Tel*Link Corp., also known as ViaPath — contracted to provide and operate the tablets in most of those states, according to the Prison Policy Initiative….

This digital shift has improved prison conditions, according to corrections officials.  For starters, the technology has “most definitely” reduced the drugs and contraband being snuck into her jail via paper mail, said Shannon Herklotz, executive chief deputy in the Detention Bureau of the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office in Texas…. The tablets’ video and instant messaging features also make it easier for inmates to stay in touch with loved ones, particularly those who can’t travel to the jail, Herklotz added….

The tablets aIso let incarcerated individuals access a much larger selection of entertainment and educational materials, including games, movies, books and podcasts, at least some of which are free, according to facility operators….

It’s sometimes an expensive lifeline, though, say inmate advocates.  Most facilities say inmates are provided the tablets for free, but that claim is deceptive since inmates are often charged for services they use or time they spend on those tablets, advocates point out….  Several state corrections departments earn a percentage of the fees tablet providers charge inmates, while other states earn a flat fee for access to their facilities….

In addition to reaching into inmates’ wallets, the tablets let authorities reach into their communications, experts warn. Corrections officials can access all the scanned mail, text messages, emails and videos sent and received via the tablets, which can be stored indefinitely, according to inmate advocates.