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Inside the Shadowy Business of Prison Phone Calls
Loaded on July 31, 2015
by Eric Markowitz
published in Prison Legal News
August, 2015, page 16
Filed under:
Computers,
Money/Property,
Trust Accounts,
Telephone Rates,
Visiting,
Video Visitation.
Location:
United States of America.
Inside the Shadowy Business of Prison Phone Calls
An IBTimes investigation into the secretive world of selling phone calls to prisoners and their families.
by Eric Markowitz
Joanne Jones, an occupational therapist from Warwick, Rhode Island, has made an unlikely foe in the past year: Securus Technologies, a billion-dollar prison …
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More from this issue:
- Greenwashing Washington State’s Prison System in a River of Sewage, by Rick Anderson
- Inside the Shadowy Business of Prison Phone Calls, by Eric Markowitz
- Tennessee Prisoners Suing Private Prisons Not Required to File in Local Venue, by David Reutter
- News in Brief
- CA: Persons on Community Supervision Eligible to Seek Transfer to Another State, by Lonnie Burton
- Final Class-Action Settlement Pending in “Kids for Cash” Scandal
- Prisoners Released When Jails Can’t Feed Them, by Mark Wilson
- Investigation Forces Arizona Clemency Board Chairman to Resign, by Joe Watson
- Kentucky Jail Prisoners Make Mattresses, by David Reutter
- Notorious Psych Ward at Miami-Dade Jail Finally Shuttered, by David Reutter
- Ninth Circuit Finds Graham v. Florida Retroactive; 254-Year Sentence Unconstitutional, by Mark Wilson
- Does Political Spending by Private Prison Firms in Oklahoma Influence Prison Reform?, by Joe Watson
- Nebraska Law Unconstitutionally Forfeits Good Time for Refusal to Submit DNA Sample, by David Reutter
- Three Strikes Litigant Required to Show Ongoing “Imminent Danger” to Proceed on Appeal, by Lonnie Burton
- Failure to State Rationale in Denying Appointment of Counsel was Abuse of Discretion
- Vermont: Retaliatory Furlough Denial Reviewable on Rule 75 Motion, by Mark Wilson
- Ninth Circuit Finds that ICE Detention After Indictment Counts Against Sentence, by Derek Gilna
- Supreme Court Strikes Down Ban on Short Beard for Muslim Prisoner, by Derek Gilna
- Alaska High Court Reaffirms Negligence Standard to Protect Prisoners from Harm, by David Reutter
- Controversy Surrounds Shackling of Dying and Comatose Prisoners in UK, by Matthew Clarke
- Who Owns Private Prison Stock?, by Alex Friedmann
- Tenth Circuit: Ignoring Prisoner’s Severe Pain Precludes Qualified Immunity, by Mark Wilson
- Supreme Court Rules Qualified Immunity Shields Prison Officials from Suicide Claim, by Derek Gilna
- Report Finds Two-Thirds of Private Prison Contracts Include “Lockup Quotas”, by Joe Watson
- $1.15 Million for Florida Pretrial Detainee’s Death, by David Reutter
- Virginia Must Improve Prison Medical Care Under Proposed Class-action Settlement, by David Reutter
- Jury Awards $12,000 to Connecticut Prisoner for Unsanitary Mattress, by David Reutter
- UN Commission Approves Mandela Rules on Treatment of Prisoners, by David Fathi
- North Carolina Prisoner, Victim of Sexual Assault, Awarded One Dollar in Damages
- Two Names Added to Monument Memorializing Slain Prosecutors, by Matthew Clarke
- Pell Grants for Prisoners: New Bill Restores Hope of Reinstating College Programs, by Christopher Zoukis
- Peer-Review Reports Must be Disclosed in Philadelphia Jail Conditions Suit, by David Reutter
- Supreme Court Voids ACCA’s Residual Clause in Landmark Decision, by Derek Gilna
- San Diego Deputies Faulted for Jail Death, by Christopher Zoukis
- Nebraska Returns Ex-Offenders to Prison after Sentence Miscalculation Scandal, by Matthew Clarke
- $3,000 Jury Award to Arizona Prisoner Denied Prostate Care, by David Reutter
- Second Circuit Unseals Jail Conditions Settlement Compliance Reports; Public Has First Amendment Right of Access, by Mark Wilson
- Alabama Courts Must Review Substance of Claim Despite Pleading’s Title, by David Reutter
- $750,000 Settlement in New Mexico “Controlled Seating” Lawsuit, by Matthew Clarke
- West Virginia City Settles Suit over Jail Prisoner’s Death for $460,000, by Matthew Clarke
- Minnesota DOC Sued Over Failure to Provide New Hepatitis C Treatment Protocol, by Greg Dober
- UK Prison Cook Awarded $160,000 for Back Injury, by Derek Gilna
- Michigan: $8 Million Settlement after Prisoner’s Baby Born with Brain Damage, by Shepherd Litsey
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Persistent, Ongoing Environmental Violations at Washington’s Walla Walla Prison, by Panagioti Tsolkas
More from Eric Markowitz:
- Chain Gang 2.0: If You Can’t Afford This GPS Ankle Bracelet, You Get Thrown In Jail, Jan. 12, 2017
- Electronic Monitoring Has Become the New Debtors Prison, March 3, 2016
- Inside the Shadowy Business of Prison Phone Calls, July 31, 2015
- Poison Prison: Is Toxic Dust Sickening Inmates Locked up in Coal Country?, May 27, 2015
More from these topics:
- Special Digital Currencies Issue: Bitcoin and CBDCs What Is Bitcoin? The Answer to Government Surveillance and Control Through Money An Essential Introduction, Glossary of Multidisciplinary Terminology, and Colorful History, Aug. 15, 2025. Money/Property, Police State-Surveillance, Electronic Surveillance, Money Laundering/Structuring.
- From the Editor, Aug. 15, 2025. Money/Property, Police State-Surveillance, Electronic Surveillance, Money Laundering/Structuring.
- Central Bank Digital Currencies: Trojan Horses Delivering Mass Surveillance Under the Guise of Monetary Innovation, Aug. 15, 2025. Money/Property, Police State-Surveillance, Electronic Surveillance, Money Laundering/Structuring.
- $815,000 Settlement in Nevada Class-Action Suit Over Debit Release Cards, Aug. 1, 2025. Money/Property, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Trust Accounts.
- FCC Backtracks on 2024 Order to Cut Prison Phone and Video Rates by Half, Aug. 1, 2025. Telephone Rates, Video Visitation, Private Phone Contractors, Securus.
- HRDC Collaborates on Prison Telecom Cost Report to Washington Lawmakers, Aug. 1, 2025. Electronic Tablets, Telephone Access, Telephone Rates.
- JPay Loses Bid to Revoke Class Certification in Washington Prisoners’ Challenge to Crummy Products and Service, July 15, 2025. Electronic Tablets, Computers, Telephone Rates, Securus.
- A Colorado Jail Has Banned In-Person Visits Since the Pandemic, July 15, 2025. Visiting, Attorney Visits, Extended Family Visiting, Video Visitation.
- Free Calls in Massachusetts Lead to Defunded Prison Programs, July 15, 2025. Telephone Access, Telephone Rates, Private Phone Contractors.
- Colorado Passes New Law to Expand Prisoner Visitation Rights, July 15, 2025. Conditions of Confinement, Extended Family Visiting, Video Visitation.

