Idaho Prison Blog

12/22/21 HUGE HOLIDAY SAVINGS ARE HERE! Sorry for the confusion our previous message may have caused... Now through January 3rd, save on stamps and select media titles!* If your Family and Friends buy stamps this week they'll EARN 10% EXTRA stamps for every stamp package purchased on packages of 5 or more! Plus, we've got great deals on select media titles* - soyoucan stock up and save big! Please note:Stamp packages purchased in the tabletwill notreflect bonus. So, be sure to tell your Family and Friends to buy stamps so they can EARN 10% EXTRA for every package purchased on packages of 5 or more! Don't miss out these savings won't last long. *Available at participating facilities. //////// 12/20/21 Huge Holiday Savings are Here! Now through January 3rd, save on stamps and media! Earn 10% EXTRA stamps for every stamp package purchased on packages of 5 or more! Plus, check out the great deals on select media titles so you can stock up and save big! Dont miss out these d...

Once again JPay is refusing to take steps to fix the conflict between the firmware in the JP6s tablets (actually a modified Android tablet) and the email app. According to an expert on Android tablet technology who recently examined the applications and operating systems in a Jp6s, JPay has screwed around so much with the firmware (some under the guise of security and others for unexplained reasons) that most installed apps cannot operate as designed. Further, most of the applications installed are not sufficient or recommended for the operating system - likely due to JPay using "freeware" in an effort to save money. JPay (trouble ticket) representatives continue to send "canned" responses to prisoners who report problems with their tablets - and to make matters worse, their instructions to prisoners of a means to repair the problem neither work, or even apply to the JP6s tablets. For example, most canned responses instruct prisoners to "reboot" the tablet...

In a recent search for positive information on the JPay music site I discovered a genre of albums (for $15 and change, plus tax) titled "Subliminal Positive Affirmations for Change" by Subliminal Healing Group. I first noted that JPay had removed the actual album cover icons (from EVERY album in the system) and replaced them with one of about ten stock photos (I figured that when I purchased an album, I am entitled to the original cover as well as the cover is downloaded to the tablet along with the music, etc.). Even more disturbing is that JPay has taken it upon themselves to censor (remove) tracks of the album - and while there is no indication of WHAT (name of the track) they pulled from the Positive Affirmations album (it now simply bears the word **CENSORED** amid other tracks) - and there are hundreds of edited / censored tracks in albums used in Positivity Training. Indeed, JPay - not the IDOC - has not only removed albums/songs from their available media which do not...

When something goes wrong, where does one place the blame? In most instances, people tend to blame the weather, unforseen circumstances or equipment failure long before citing human error. In each and every case however, human error - somewhere in the line of events - is to blame. Let's take for example the loss of satellite television programming during inclement weather (we'll use snow in this case). When a satellite dish (or the horn) is covered with snow, there can be degradation of the signal below the threshold of viability to the point that programming is not available. At this point, most people argue that the weather is the culprit, and indeed, on-screen information may well inform the end-user that it's the fault of weather, trees, etc... but look further. Had someone properly aligned the dish to the satellite, the problem may not have occurred as the signal strength may have been sufficient to overcome any amount of snow covering the dish/horn. If the strength of...

///////// MESSAGE FROM IDOC WORK OPPORTUNITY South Idaho Correctional Institution (SICI) is now accepting applications for experienced electricians, either those who previously held journeymen level license or apprentices with a minimum of one year experience working in an industrial or commercial setting. An upcoming project, the PRC Building remodel, will provide a total of $3.00 per hour to qualified/selected applicants. The scope of this project is anticipated to last four (4) to eight (8) weeks and offers a $250 bonus to qualified/selected applicants upon the final inspection. Once the project is complete, those selected are welcome to remain employed with our Maintenance Department at the prevailing wage (described below), or pursue employment opportunities with SICI Vocational Work Projects. Trades we are currently hiring for at $2.00 per hour are: Heavy Equipment Operators Welders / fabricators Concrete workers Plumbers HVAC technicians Electricians Automotive technicians Farmi...

In a memorandum provided to inmates late Friday (1/14/22) Warden Randy Valley informed prisoners they would again be locked down due to Covid concerns - not that anyone has tested positive mind you - but because counties in which the prison is located has seen a recent rise in cases. Warden Valleys' memorandum followed closely an email to prisoners from Bree Derrick, Deputy Director of Prisons received 1/14/22 stating Idaho prisons (including ISCC) would be on a "modified-secure status". Typically this means prisoners in units with cells would have access to the dayroom, but could not leave the tier. Instead, Warden Valley makes it clear there will be only 20 minutes of dayroom, per day, per inmate - the time in which any phone call, shower, commissary orders, heating of meals or other activities must be completed. Of course, this does not apply to those privileged inmates who make money for prison administrators to skim from the blind and deaf or belong to the administra...

In an April, 2021 memo from the Chief of Prisons at the Idaho Department of Correction, staff and prisoners were notified that incoming books were no longer allowed to be sourced from Amazon (amongst other popular vendors), and that prisoners are allowed only to receive books either from a small number of named vendors - or directly from the publisher. (* See full content of memo below.) In the memo, Prison Chief Chad Page stated his reasoning for the new restrictions was that contraband was being introduced into the prison system via books purchased through such vendors as Amazon Marketplace and Barnes and Noble. Page went on to name companies from which prisoners and their family/friends are authorized to order books - most of which sell used books. Chad Pages' stated rationale in disallowing books ordered from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Prison Legal News or other such sources - even new books - lacks any justification or merit. Most of the vendors now authorized sell used books -...

As one would imagine and expect, menu planning, food preparation and food service in prison is considerably different than what is experienced at home, or even in a large restaurant. While there are those who could care less what prisoners are fed, and maybe even believe prisoners should get only a daily ration of bread and water (and little of that), the reality is the bread and water days are gone, and taxpayer money feeds Idaho prisoners. To be clear, this piece is not a hatchet job or a prisoner railing against the prison fare. Because your tax dollars pay for most of this food, it's your right to know what is, and what is not being done. "Where the preparation and/or presentation of food are lacking, people generally dislike it, even if it is the highest quality food cooked by top chefs." -- Celebrity Chef Gordon Ramsay Food and ingredients received by Idaho prisons are, for the most part, of good quality, though inevitably some food received at the prison facility a...