CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Regional Jail Authority Executive Director David Farmer is exploring the idea of providing computer tablet devices to inmates of the West Virginia regional jail system for purchase.
“A vendor has approached Regional Jails about selling inmates handheld tablets that are akin to iPad or Android based tablets,” said Lawrence Messina, Spokesman for the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety. “They are certainly not off-the-shelf tablets. These are built specifically for a correction population.”
Since explaining the offer to members of the Regional Jail Authority last week, Messina said many have gotten the wrong idea about the idea.
“The concept is so preliminary when it comes to the regional jail system right now we’re doing fact finding,” he said. “We’ve heard from a vendor and have been invited to visit Tennessee and really that’s as far as it’s gotten.”
The suggestion from the vendor came amid success with the program in other states. Messina said they are looking at the idea with caution and want to explore the potential merits for the West Virginia Regional Jail Authority.
“They would allow inmates to pursue their GED coursework on the tablets,” said Messina. “There’s a way to exchange e-mail with loved ones, not on something like Gmail, but on a proprietary system.”
The tablets would be completely monitored and all internet access would be controlled by the jail system, Messina said. The jails would not provide the tablets to the inmates, they would only be offered in the commissary for sale like any other product.
“Just as inmates pay for phone calls and they pay for video phone calls we now have with our kiosks in the jail system, this is a fee-based system,” he said. “Inmates would be paying.”
Use of the devices has helped to cut down on trouble with inmates who have idle time in other states. The potential contact with loved ones has also shown some success at reducing recidivism according to Messina.
RJA Executive Director Farmer expects to learn more when he visits a Tennessee prison system in the weeks ahead to learn more about the program.