Idaho Prison Blog

Within hours of posting on this site my recent article ANOTHER STATE PRISON SYSTEM MAKES ALL INMATE CALLS FREE , I received an email from Scott McIntosh containing a copy of an article he had written for the Idaho Statesman, published November 26, 2023 regarding the same issues I covered in my piece - but from a completely different perspective (as one might expect). If you get a chance, his article is great read on what is going on with the inmate telephone/video visiting systems in Idaho and beyond. Don't forget to go back and re-read my article too. Here's the link I was provided by Mr. McIntosh for his article: https://idahostatesman.com/opinion/from-the-opinion-editor/article282224548.html Dale

In January, 2023, I posted an article on this site titled ISCC PROVIDES MISINFORMATION TO NEWS MEDIA LOOKING INTO DECREPIT CONDITIONS IN THE PRISON . In March, 2023 I authored and posted another piece titled IDAHO TAXPAYERS PAYING THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS FOR SHOWER TRAILERS WHICH HAVE NEVER BEEN USED. In October, 2023 I followed up with yet another piece titled ISCC 'SHOWER TRAILERS' FINALLY REMOVED, ALONG WITH $184,708.62 OF TAXPAYER MONEY DOWN THE DRAIN. In a nutshell, these articles concerned self-contained showering trailers that were dragged to the Idaho State Correctional Center from Nevada because the hot water system at the prison (i.e., boilers) had gone down, leaving the main section of the facility without hot water for showers, washing and other necessities. These trailers sat, unused, at the ISCC for more than 9 months, while the payments continued to accrue. Shortly after I posted the last article on this topic, I received an email (within hours in fact) regarding t...

Around October, 2022 - possibly even before that, the Meridian Canine Rescue [www.meridiancaninerescue.org] (MCR) took over the "dog program" at the Idaho State Correctional Center (ISCC), a program previously operated by the Idaho Humane Society. With the takeover, and some questionable activities associated with the program (and inmates participating in same) several emails sent to MCR staff have gone unanswered. Almost everyone wants to see a prison dog program succeed, giving unwanted or homeless dogs opportunities to become socialized, receive medical care, exercise, basic training and ultimately a good home in the community where they can live the dog's life. What most everyone does NOT want to see is undue [and dangerous] favoritism, lack of (prison) security, misuse of funds - especially funds which have been donated by the public - abuse of animals or violations of laws in the effort to home these animals (the dogs, not the prisoners). Prisoners who have certain ...

On 12/4/2023, the Idaho Department of Administration signed a contract (Number 4543) on behalf of the Idaho Department of Correction with a company located in Meridian, ID to provide closed circuit television (CCTV) services to state prisons (and work centers) located south of Boise. The vendor/contractor, Praxis Limited Co. (dba A+ Satellite) provided the lowest of 3 bids obtained for providing a minimum 32 "Core Package" channels from Dish Satellite services (including at least one add-on 'sports' channel), all available over-the-air (OTA) channels [FN1] as well as the necessary hardware for two years beginning February 15, 2024. The name of the package to be installed is called the "A+ Satellite Extreme Economy Pack". The two year, $527,836.08 contract may be renewed, extended or amended three additional terms of one year each. IDOC facilities to receive services under this contract are IMSI, ISCI, SICI, ISCC, TVCRC and SBWCC, and will provide service to ...

In addition to the states of California, Colorado and Connecticut, the State of Minnesota passed legislation earlier this year which guarantees that all telephone calls from prisoners, both in jails and prisons, are free of charge as of July 1, 2023. According to an article published in the November, 2023 issue of Prison Legal News, numerous studies have shown that when incarcerated individuals are released, their chances to succeed are increased, and the chances of reincarceration are reduced if prisoners maintain strong family bonds while inside. PLN notes that state and local economies also benefit in that instead of spending money on exorbitantly priced telephone calls [with that money then being sent to out-of-state corporations], the freed up funds can be spent on goods and services from local businesses. Because Idaho has such a geographically diverse population, with family and prisoners separated by hundreds of miles even within the state, telephones are a virtual lifeline for...