VIDEO VISITATION IN IDAHO PRISONS - AVAILABLE YESTERDAY, NEEDED NOW
For more than 2 decades, inmates confined to jails, state and federal prisons and other detention facilities have utilized technology to allow remote video visitation between prisoners, attorneys and other persons on the outside. Unfortunately and inexplicably, the technology has yet to make it to Idaho prisons despite remote video visitation available even in Canyon, Ada and other county jails in Idaho.
For years, IDOC administrators have continued to curb the number of days and hours of prisoner visitation in prison facilities citing reasons of overcrowding in visiting areas, reduced staff availability and time necessary to process visitors into and out of the facility. These visiting areas are often used for parole hearings, classes and other purposes, forcing cancellation of regular visiting days/hours, further reducing visiting opportunities. All the while administrators are touting the benefits of visitation and contact with family and friends as rehabilitative efforts being made by the IDOC.
The IDOC has traditionally blamed contact visitation with the increase of the introduction of drugs and other contraband into the otherwise secure facilities, and every month, thousands of dollars and staff hours are expended in verifying the identity and performing background checks of potential visitors before approving their entry into the institution.
Incorporating remote video visitation into the visiting model within the IDOC would not only reduce the number of (physical) contact visits, thereby reducing the possibility of drugs entering the institutions, prisoners who normally do not receive visits due to the distance, financial or medical restrictions of family and friends or for reasons of security (protective custody, administrative segregations, etc.) could receive the rehabilatative effects of stronger family ties. These remote visits would not only pay for themselves, they would generate revenue to the General Fund as are currently realized from telephone and email services provided to prisoner and their families - funds in excess of a quarter million dollars per month. (See the post CELL PHONES IN PRISONS - SECURITY CONCERN OR FINANCIAL FARCE? on this blog.)
There is absolutely no justifiable rationale for the IDOC not making available remote video visitation in addition to contact visits, especially considering the vast distances across the state. In some cases, families of some prisoners must travel hundreds if not thousands of miles to visit their loved ones for 2 hours at a time - with some flying in, staying the night at a motel and hiring a ride to and from the prison just to visit sons and daughters, mothers and fathers. Video visitation would reduce or in some cases eliminate these struggles, and allow visitation from loved ones around the world with press of a button.
The technology and infrastructure necessary to allow video visitation in most IDOC prison facilities already exists, or can be installed easily and without cost to the IDOC or the taxpayer. At some facilities, including ISCC, video visitation kiosks have for years been used to allow some prisoners to remain in high security areas while their visitors sit in the contact visiting areas and visit electronically. Currently, virtually every IDOC prisoner also has access to a kiosk equipped with cameras and handsets and designed for - you guessed it - remote video visitation. Remote visits may also be monitored or recorded where contact visits cannot (in most instances).
The option for implementing a turn key remote video visitation program has already been approved by the IDOC (as far back as 2014) in favor of CenturyLink, the (main) vendor/general contractor used by the IDOC for inmate electronic communications (Contract # CO14-017 CONCESSIONS SERVICES AGREEMENT FOR INMATE COMMUNICATION AND KIOSK-BASED TECNOLOGY ACCESS - section 3.2 (Additional Features)). Per the contract, these remote video visitation services, and more, are also available for privileged attorney/client communications (saving thousands of dollars per month on court appoited attorney and State Appellate Public Defender visits). This means that there is no need for additional contracts or bidding by or through the Idaho Department of Administration or the Division of Purchasing before remote video visitation could begin.
So, where is the hold-up? Seems IDOC has decided to wait until JPay, CenturyLink's subcontractor, can get their [stuff] together and get those services currently offered working correctly. For example, JPay offers ebooks for sale to prisoners, [FN 1] but many of the books being sold have no text, and the eBook reader JPay downloaded to the inmate purchased tablets cannot display any of the illustration the ebooks might contain. JPay also sells/downloads "buggy" games to prisoners then refuses to correct the issues (see the post JPAY SELLS "BUGGY" DOWNLOADS TO PRISONERS REFUSES TO CORRECT OR REFUND COSTS in this blog). Music purchased by prisoners is often inexplicably deleted or removed from offerings by JPay.
After nearly 3 years in Idaho, JPay cannot seem to fix even their basic email system, truncating and randomly deleting emails, and for some odd reason, disallowing many letters, symbols and punctuation in outgoing prisoner emails (such as semicolons, paragraph symbols and other data used in everyday communications throughout the world), stating to inquiring prisoners:
"The referenced services is [sic] currently not available through JPay. However, we will be sure to send an email notification should this option becomes [sic] accessible in the near future. We apologize for not being able to further assist you. Thank you for contacting JPay Support. Kind regards, Bradley" (Trouble ticket Reference No. ICC044977). While friendly, not particularly helpful or focused on the issue at hand.
These and similar issues concern the IDOC, and cause administrators to question the viability of JPay services in Idaho - and rightly so - however, the IDOC (via CenturyLink) is not contractually obligated to limiting the implementation of remote video visiting services to only JPay. Given the apparent ties between CenturyLink and JPay however (CenturyLink has so far refused to cause JPay to take corrective measures on any of the continuing issues described) JPay would likely be the (sub)contractor providing those services despite several other companies serving many county jails throughout Idaho with few if any technological issues or interruptions.
Not so long ago, IDOC administrators refused to allow prisoners to possess the remote controls which were sold with televisions via the commissary, fearing that the remote would allow prisoners to open electrically controlled cell doors. As ridiculous as this sounds to the informed consumer electronics user, one must remember that the majority of the IDOC administrators are "old guard" and like a loving grandparent, often out of touch with technology - fearing, loathing and dismissing the benefits such tech can bring. Implementing remote video visitation in the IDOC will increase security, reduce staff workload and strengthen family ties in the interest of rehabilitation.
[FN 1] The only ebooks currently offered for sale to prisoners are works that are in the public domain, and cost nothing to Jpay to acquire.
DS
For years, IDOC administrators have continued to curb the number of days and hours of prisoner visitation in prison facilities citing reasons of overcrowding in visiting areas, reduced staff availability and time necessary to process visitors into and out of the facility. These visiting areas are often used for parole hearings, classes and other purposes, forcing cancellation of regular visiting days/hours, further reducing visiting opportunities. All the while administrators are touting the benefits of visitation and contact with family and friends as rehabilitative efforts being made by the IDOC.
The IDOC has traditionally blamed contact visitation with the increase of the introduction of drugs and other contraband into the otherwise secure facilities, and every month, thousands of dollars and staff hours are expended in verifying the identity and performing background checks of potential visitors before approving their entry into the institution.
Incorporating remote video visitation into the visiting model within the IDOC would not only reduce the number of (physical) contact visits, thereby reducing the possibility of drugs entering the institutions, prisoners who normally do not receive visits due to the distance, financial or medical restrictions of family and friends or for reasons of security (protective custody, administrative segregations, etc.) could receive the rehabilatative effects of stronger family ties. These remote visits would not only pay for themselves, they would generate revenue to the General Fund as are currently realized from telephone and email services provided to prisoner and their families - funds in excess of a quarter million dollars per month. (See the post CELL PHONES IN PRISONS - SECURITY CONCERN OR FINANCIAL FARCE? on this blog.)
There is absolutely no justifiable rationale for the IDOC not making available remote video visitation in addition to contact visits, especially considering the vast distances across the state. In some cases, families of some prisoners must travel hundreds if not thousands of miles to visit their loved ones for 2 hours at a time - with some flying in, staying the night at a motel and hiring a ride to and from the prison just to visit sons and daughters, mothers and fathers. Video visitation would reduce or in some cases eliminate these struggles, and allow visitation from loved ones around the world with press of a button.
The technology and infrastructure necessary to allow video visitation in most IDOC prison facilities already exists, or can be installed easily and without cost to the IDOC or the taxpayer. At some facilities, including ISCC, video visitation kiosks have for years been used to allow some prisoners to remain in high security areas while their visitors sit in the contact visiting areas and visit electronically. Currently, virtually every IDOC prisoner also has access to a kiosk equipped with cameras and handsets and designed for - you guessed it - remote video visitation. Remote visits may also be monitored or recorded where contact visits cannot (in most instances).
The option for implementing a turn key remote video visitation program has already been approved by the IDOC (as far back as 2014) in favor of CenturyLink, the (main) vendor/general contractor used by the IDOC for inmate electronic communications (Contract # CO14-017 CONCESSIONS SERVICES AGREEMENT FOR INMATE COMMUNICATION AND KIOSK-BASED TECNOLOGY ACCESS - section 3.2 (Additional Features)). Per the contract, these remote video visitation services, and more, are also available for privileged attorney/client communications (saving thousands of dollars per month on court appoited attorney and State Appellate Public Defender visits). This means that there is no need for additional contracts or bidding by or through the Idaho Department of Administration or the Division of Purchasing before remote video visitation could begin.
So, where is the hold-up? Seems IDOC has decided to wait until JPay, CenturyLink's subcontractor, can get their [stuff] together and get those services currently offered working correctly. For example, JPay offers ebooks for sale to prisoners, [FN 1] but many of the books being sold have no text, and the eBook reader JPay downloaded to the inmate purchased tablets cannot display any of the illustration the ebooks might contain. JPay also sells/downloads "buggy" games to prisoners then refuses to correct the issues (see the post JPAY SELLS "BUGGY" DOWNLOADS TO PRISONERS REFUSES TO CORRECT OR REFUND COSTS in this blog). Music purchased by prisoners is often inexplicably deleted or removed from offerings by JPay.
After nearly 3 years in Idaho, JPay cannot seem to fix even their basic email system, truncating and randomly deleting emails, and for some odd reason, disallowing many letters, symbols and punctuation in outgoing prisoner emails (such as semicolons, paragraph symbols and other data used in everyday communications throughout the world), stating to inquiring prisoners:
"The referenced services is [sic] currently not available through JPay. However, we will be sure to send an email notification should this option becomes [sic] accessible in the near future. We apologize for not being able to further assist you. Thank you for contacting JPay Support. Kind regards, Bradley" (Trouble ticket Reference No. ICC044977). While friendly, not particularly helpful or focused on the issue at hand.
These and similar issues concern the IDOC, and cause administrators to question the viability of JPay services in Idaho - and rightly so - however, the IDOC (via CenturyLink) is not contractually obligated to limiting the implementation of remote video visiting services to only JPay. Given the apparent ties between CenturyLink and JPay however (CenturyLink has so far refused to cause JPay to take corrective measures on any of the continuing issues described) JPay would likely be the (sub)contractor providing those services despite several other companies serving many county jails throughout Idaho with few if any technological issues or interruptions.
Not so long ago, IDOC administrators refused to allow prisoners to possess the remote controls which were sold with televisions via the commissary, fearing that the remote would allow prisoners to open electrically controlled cell doors. As ridiculous as this sounds to the informed consumer electronics user, one must remember that the majority of the IDOC administrators are "old guard" and like a loving grandparent, often out of touch with technology - fearing, loathing and dismissing the benefits such tech can bring. Implementing remote video visitation in the IDOC will increase security, reduce staff workload and strengthen family ties in the interest of rehabilitation.
[FN 1] The only ebooks currently offered for sale to prisoners are works that are in the public domain, and cost nothing to Jpay to acquire.
DS