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Dallas County, Texas Jails Finally Enter the 21st Century on Phone Rates
Loaded on Sept. 1, 2020
by Edward Lyon
published in Prison Legal News
September, 2020, page 53
Filed under:
Telephone Rates.
Location:
Texas.
by Ed Lyon
Until February 18, 2020, it cost pre- and post-trial detainees in the Dallas County, Texas jails .24¢ per minute to speak to their families on the phone. Urged by criminal justice reform groups and the citizenry, the Dallas County Commissioners Court voted unanimously to forgo any and all profit-sharing in the jail’s phone system, operated by Carrollton, Texas-based Securus Technologies, in exchange for a reduction in calling costs to .01¢ per minute. This move will cost the county $2.4 million in yearly revenue.
Another positive change will be making electronic tablets available to the county jail’s population. It will cost detainees $5 per month to rent a tablet with educational programming included.
Movies, music and video games will be available for 99¢ to $12.99 per item. Incoming e-mail messages will be free. It will cost 24¢ for a prisoner to send responses.
Sheriff Marian Brown was initially worried about tablet monitoring and usage capabilities. Securus Technologies assuaged Brown’s trepidations, assuring her the only outreach possible will be to the ultra-secure Securus intranet — and then only when the tablets are docked at stations located outside of the prisoners’ cells overnight.
Sheriff Brown has opted for a positive, common sense approach to e-tablet introduction in her jails.
Using a “slow roll out,” she will use the ‘carrot and stick’ method for access to the privilege. She stated, “You know you have to behave yourself if you’re going to use the tablet. If you’re not behaving yourself, then of course you don’t get the tablet.”
Sheriff Brown, welcome to the 21st century!
Sources: dallasnews.com, dallasobserver.com
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More from this issue:
- What’s Justice Got to Do with It?, by Doran Larson
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Can the Pandemic Undermine Mass Incarceration?, by Jayson Hawkins
- Animal Shelters Provide Cooler Temperatures Than Florida Prisons in Summer, by David Reutter
- North Carolina Criticized for Prisoner Transfers During Pandemic, by Edward Lyon
- Report: Arkansas Let Asymptomatic Prison Employees Infected with Coronavirus Continue to Work, by David Reutter
- $550,000 Settlement in Georgia Prisoner’s Starvation Death, by David Reutter
- COVID-19 in Hawaii’s Lockups: Still a Success Story but Cracks Starting to Show, by Edward Lyon
- Disabled Detainee at Cook County Jail Wins Class Certification in Lawsuit, by David Reutter
- The Latest News on How to Protect Yourself From Infection, by Michael D. Cohen, MD
- Prisons Banning Black Culture and History Books, by Edward Lyon
- ICE Deportations Fueling Spread of COVID-19 to Latin American Countries, by Dale Chappell
- Jails and Prisons Have Reduced Their Populations in the Face of the Pandemic, but Not Enough To Save Lives, by Peter Wagner, Emily Widra
- The Prison Was Built to Hold 1,500 Inmates. It Had Over 2,000 Coronavirus Cases, by Dara Lind
- How Long Can You Hide a Dead Body in a Prison Cell?, by Keri Blakinger
- Interview: Jodie Sinclair on Her New Book, “Love Behind Bars”, by Ken Silverstein
- Interview: Corene Kendrick on How the Prison Litigation Reform Act Strips Prisoners of Legal Rights, by Ken Silverstein
- Pay Up or Lockup: Housing Shortage Kept Cash-Poor Parolees Behind Bars, by Ike Swetlitz
- Ohio Jails Under Investigation, by Jayson Hawkins
- Colorado Explores Ending Private Prisons, by Jayson Hawkins
- San Francisco Eliminates Fees on Jail Phone Calls, by Mark Wilson
- Maine DOC, Medical Provider, Pay $250,000 Settlement Due to Excessive Force on 11-Year-Old, by Mark Wilson
- Consultants Advising Rich on Prison Life, by Kevin Bliss
- Wisconsin: Court Dismisses Prisoners’ Suit Over Asbestos, Mold on Procedural Grounds, by Chad Marks
- Does Increased Guard Violence Mean Texas Prisoners Are at Greater Risk?, by Matthew Clarke
- Transgender Woman Who Says She Was Raped, Beaten, Sues Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center
- BOP Official Reportedly Had Sexual Relationship With Former Police Union Head, by Bill Barton
- Can Kentucky Keep Charging Prisoners for Their Jail Stay if They Are Found Not Guilty?, by Dale Chappell
- Doctor at Florida Detention Center Spread COVID-19 to Prisoners, by David Reutter
- Prison Art is Rehabilitation, by Kevin Bliss
- D.C. Appeals Court Mixed on Request for Records and Video, by David Reutter
- Rhode Island Takes Uncommon Steps to Address a Common Problem: Drug Addiction in Prison, by Dale Chappell
- From Super Villain to Super Man, Tennessee Prisoner Still Executed, by Edward Lyon
- Record Number of Laws Passed Reducing Barriers for People With Criminal Records, by Douglas Ankney
- Tioga County, New York Police Informant Paid $50,000 to Settle False Arrest Claims, by Mark Wilson
- New York Prisoner Prevails in Lawsuit, Freed from 23 Years in Solitary Confinement, by Douglas Ankney
- Second Circuit Vacates Summary Judgment on Connecticut Prisoner’s Failure to Protect Claim, by Mark Wilson
- Lifers Now Exceed Entire Prison Population of 1970, by Dale Chappell
- Many of Aging Kansas State Prison Population Could Be Released, by Edward Lyon
- $2.8 Million Settlement in New York Pretrial Detainee’s Suicide, by David Reutter
- Study Shows Solitary Confinement Poses Mortality Risk After Release, by Jayson Hawkins
- Dallas County, Texas Jails Finally Enter the 21st Century on Phone Rates, by Edward Lyon
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- Hundreds Serving Life Due to Less Than Unanimous Jury Verdicts, March 15, 2021
- California Prison System Fined $400,000 For Prisoner Transfers That Sparked Surge in COVID-19, Also Faulted For Easing Restrictions, March 1, 2021
- Prisoner Art on Display in New York City Exhibition, March 1, 2021
- California’s San Quentin and Folsom Prisons Hardest-Hit by COVID-19, March 1, 2021
- Data: Families of Arizona Prison Guards Suffer High Rates of Domestic Violence, March 1, 2021
- Successive Corruption Scandal Rocks Mississippi Prison System, March 1, 2021
- Collateral Consequences of Mass Incarceration, Feb. 1, 2021
- COVID-19: What Texas Must Do to Save Prisoners’ Lives, Feb. 1, 2021
More from these topics:
- Michigan Begins Video Visits During Coronavirus Pandemic, April 1, 2021. COVID-19, Telephone Rates, Video Visitation.
- Federal Judge in Georgia Grants Class Action Status to Prisoners’ Suit Against Global Tel*Link, Feb. 1, 2021. Contractor Misconduct, Class Certification, Telephone Rates, Contractor Liability.
- Global Tel*Link Hit with Sanctions For Discovery Violations in Georgia Prison Call Class Action, Feb. 1, 2021. Contractor Misconduct, Discovery, Telephone Rates, Contractor Liability.
- NBA Owner Capitalizes on Mass Incarceration; Players Silent, Dec. 1, 2020. JPay, Inc., Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Telephone Rates.
- Cost of Communicating with Prisoners Breaking Family Budgets During Pandemic, Dec. 1, 2020. COVID-19, Telephone Rates.
- Federal Judge Approves $25 Million Class Action Settlement Against Global Tel*Link, Dec. 1, 2020. Private Prisons, Telephone Rates, Class Actions.
- $225,000 Windfall in Lehigh County, Pa. But Officials Don’t Cut Jail Phone Costs, Nov. 1, 2020. COVID-19, Telephone Rates.
- Massachusetts Jail Phone Cost Reductions Under Attack, Nov. 1, 2020. Telephone Rates.
- San Francisco Eliminates Fees on Jail Phone Calls, Sept. 1, 2020. Commissary, Telephone Rates.
- Quarantine Fatigue vs. Escalating Prison Lockdowns (During COVID-19 & Black Lives Matter Protests), July 30, 2020. Telephone Rates, Fathers in Prison, Children of Prisoners.