15 minutes for $17. private companies and government profit off calls between prisoners & family

[Liberal_in_LA]

used to be that if you were incarcerated at, say, the state penitentiary or the local jail you could call your family collect for as little as $4 an hour.


But then, states began signing contracts with private phone companies like AT&T, who, in turn, began charging sky-high rates for phone calls between prisoners and their families.

A 15-minute phone call that used to cost just a few bucks soon started costing as much as $17, which is a lot to ask from people in jail and prison, who generally have little to no income or from their families, who often live in poverty.

Of course, while prisoners struggled to find a way to talk to their loved ones without breaking the bank, the phone companies got - and have stayed - very, very rich. The prison phone service industry now rakes in around $1.2 billion every year.

And it's not just the phone companies that are getting rich off prisoners' phone calls.

Thanks to so-called "commissions" that can account for as much as 94 percent of the cost of a call, prison phone contracts have become a major source of revenue for state and local governments all across the country.
http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/how-prisons-have-become-cash-cow-rich

[Kelvin Mace]

1. Is there nothing these people will not do

to make a buck?

[daleanime]

2. No.

[Skittles]

4. never question how low they can go

they will ALWAYS go lower

[ohnoyoudidnt]

6. There is no line some people will not cross to increase profit

whether it be cartels or some legal corporations.

[awoke_in_2003]

13. They would eat your children...

if it were profitable.

[SheilaT]

3. I only recently learned about this.

And I'm totally appalled. While I have almost no contact with those in prison (yeah, I live in a bubble, I know) this is completely unacceptable.

The only reason I do know about this is that I have a very good friend who has been involved in the world of prison and inmates for a decade or more. He started by corresponding to inmates, and has become close friends with several. He has provided a home for several when they've been released. I'm in awe of what he does. Several years ago when I visited him, I went with him to a local prison to visit the man he is closest with, a man he considers his son. That man will probably be in prison for some years longer, and because of my friend I've learned about how totally stupid and non-functional most of our prison system is.

The phone call costs, while important, are only the tip of the iceberg.

In a related vein, anyone who looks at this thread should read the book The Good Wife by Stewart O'Nan. It bears absolutely no relation to the TV show of the same name. The book is about a woman whose husband has been breaking and entering into local houses for some time now, but this time a homeowner is killed during the invasion. She's pregnant with their first child. He is sentenced to 25 years to life. The novel focuses mainly on those years, as she gives birth to their child, remains faithful and loyal to him, struggles to raise that child while trying to maintain the marriage. A powerful book.

[Liberal_in_LA]

10. thanks for the book tip. there is a movie w the same name

Different plot

[SheilaT]

11. Steward O'Nan is an absolutely amazing writer.

Unfortunately, he's not that well known. He writes about ordinary people in their ordinary lives. He also gets his details correct. In The Good Wife he refers to the part of New York State around Elmira and Ithaca as the Southern Tier. Which is exactly what it is called.

[NBachers]

5. Absolutely inexcusible

As an ex long-term inmate, I can assure you that these phone calls are crucial in maintaining family ties. Spouses and children are traumatized by the experience of their loved one in prison. Hearing that voice on the phone is the best way to keep family relationships alive and loving.

Prisoners' families often lead desperate lives of poverty and need. They don't have this kind of money to spend on phone calls.

There is no hell too painful for the greedy jackals who profit off this kind of misery and exploitation.

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. well said.

[Heidi]

7. Kick, kick, kick!

[AZ Progressive]

8. Modern America's attitude is "kick em when they're down!"

The legacy of calvinism in America.

[Comrade Grumpy]

12. Somebody needs to be horse whipped. n/t