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Phone Restrictions Are Out of Hand
By Stormy Thoming-Gale. Information provided by Kathy Kurichh
In another step to limit resources for those in prison, in April 2001, the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) instituted a mandate to all wardens at federal facilities limiting inmates to 300 minutes of calling time per month (equivalent of 10 minutes per day). The reasons given were that these restrictions would "reduce phone crime" and that only 25% of the inmate population use the phone more than that anyway. If that estimate is correct, that means 40,000 people and their families are being adversely affected.
These restrictions are a mandate, not a policy. This is an important distinction. By law, the BOP must number all "policies," put them in writing, and give the public several months notice of any new policies. The phone restrictions have not been written into policy. The inmates have only seen a memo from their respective wardens -- no policy exists. In this manner, the BOP was able to implement the restrictions without input from the public, congressional leaders, prison advocates, etc.
These restrictions affect all inmates, regardless of whether or not they have ever abused their phone privileges. It should be noted that all inmate calls are paid for by the inmate (at exorbitant costs) and are monitored by BOP staff. The phone calls are made to numbers on a list pre-approved by the BOP, are preceded by a recording instructing the recipient on how to permanently delete the inmate's ability to place future calls, and how to deny the current call.
The BOP is responding to congressional and public inquiries with false information:
The BOP says that "attorney-client" calls are not affected by the new restrictions, but declines to mention that their policy allows only one 3 minute call to one's attorneys per month. Even this one call per month is nearly impossible to get, because the staff must arrange it and they are very lax in doing so. The issue of defendants with DNA tests pending, such as Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald (look for his story in the next issue of Justice Denied), has never been addressed. The only provision for additional legal calls states an example of an "imminent court date" (1995). This does not address DNA tests, which are overturning convictions on an almost weekly basis.
The BOP also says the restrictions keep the public safe from "unwanted and harassing calls." It is an impossibility for a prisoner to make unwanted or harassing calls, because each prisoner has a pre-approved phone list, and there is the recording in place which safeguards even those who are on the inmate's list, should they want to decline calls.
The BOP says the restrictions are necessary due to the large percentage of "phone crimes". However, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) stated in its report on the matter that less than 1% of the inmate population had committed a crime by phone in the past several years (144 documented cases). Of those 144, only 11 were truly crimes, such as a drug deal. The others were infractions of phone "rules". Also, it makes no sense to think that "phone crime" will be reduced by limiting the calls of inmates who have never engaged in such activity.
The OIG made recommendations to the BOP on this subject -- all of which required accountability by the Bureau. These recommendations included training staff monitors formally, punishing offending inmates, and using the multimillion-dollar monitoring system installed in November of 2000 properly. The OIG found that BOP staff were routinely not doing their jobs, not being trained, and worst of all, actually dismantling the monitoring equipment so as not to have to do their jobs. The BOP disregarded all of the OIG's recommendations and implemented this highly restrictive policy.
The BOP has declined to tell people that the few actual crimes that did occur happened before the new phone monitoring system was installed. The Director of the BOP, Kathleen Hawk Sawyer, went before the Senate Judiciary Committee and said that "buying a state of the art phone monitoring system would be the solution to the phone crime problem." Yet, despite this very expensive system, the BOP has implemented these restrictions.
The BOP says that federal inmates calls used to be "unlimited." This is untrue. Under the best of circumstances, an inmate could make about 3 or 4 calls per day. Each call is cut off automatically by computer after 15 minutes. The inmate must wait 30 to 60 minutes between calls. He or she must wait in line for 60 to 90 minutes to get access to a phone. The phones are turned off during "work hours." All of this makes "unlimited calls" an unrealistic premise to begin with -- it was never the reality.
The BOP says that its mission is to promote family ties and reduce recidivism, and yet they have implemented a policy that makes it impossible for families to stay intact, or even communicate regularly. Many inmates are sent across the country from their homes, making visits unlikely. Written correspondence cannot replace hearing a child's voice on the phone. Innocent families are being punished by these restrictions.
In the case of Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald, his attorney's request for one legal call per week with their client was denied by the warden at FCI Victorville, CA where Dr. MacDonald is incarcerated. No provisions have been made for those with court orders for DNA tests and their need to be in contact with experts, attorneys, and defense team members. The prosecutors have unlimited use of phone, fax, e-mail, etc. Yet the inmate must rely on handwritten letters, or use his phone time for attorney calls and allow these calls to be listened in on. This is a violation of a person's ability to prove his factual innocence, and the monitoring of attorney calls is a violation of the BOP's own policies.
Unfortunately, the public does not care much about inmate's rights. The point here is that most of these individuals will return to society -- more isolated, more angry and more prone to future violence without the support of those outside. Then, of course, there is the issue of the wrongly convicted, of which the public is just becoming aware. And lastly, the issue of innocent families who have the right to be in touch with their loved ones, whether or not that loved one is paying a debt to society.
The BOP is casting blame on the inmate population as a whole rather than accepting responsibility for its own shortcomings.
You can help put a stop to this outrageous mandate. Please write to your congressional leaders in the House and Senate asking that the BOP consider a less restrictive program. In your letter please be polite and calm, if you are a family member of an inmate, you might write about how the phone restrictions have personally affected you.
To locate your congressional representatives, go to Contacting the Congress at www.visi.com/juan/congress.
You should also write to the Director of the BOP, Kathleen Hawk Sawyer at:
Kathleen Hawk Sawyer
Director, Federal Bureau of Prisons
320 First St NW
Washington DC 20534You should write rather than e-mail if possible.
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