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Tags: cellphone | communication
OPINION

Congress Can't Even Get Prison Cellphone Restrictions Right

prison or jail cellphone monitoring and or restrictions
(Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images) 

Michael Reagan By with Michael R. Shannon Tuesday, 16 May 2023 10:47 AM EDT Current | Bio | Archive

Reality shows us prisons are hotbeds of both criminals and crime.

And we aren’t talking about past crime, we are talking about current crime.

Taking place as you read this.

Prison inmates organize murders, riots, drug dealing, fraud, extortion and a host of other crimes.

These aren’t the criminals Soros-funded district attorneys have let loose with a slap on the wrist and a Radio Shack ankle monitor.

These guys are all in jail when the crimes are committed.

How does this happen you ask?

Easy.

The "benefits" of modern technology.

The same cellphone that's helping your daughter transition is also helping criminals maintain contact and authority over gangs on the outside of the prison.

Now cellphones aren’t allowed in prison and neither is rape.

Yet both are happening. There is an easy solution for the former and it’s called a cellphone jammer. These handy devices render mute any cell phone within range, meaning crime kingpins will be reduced to bribing guards to carry messages, just like the old days.

So why aren’t prisons using cell phone jammers to protect the public outside the walls of the big house? That’s where the hypothetical triumphs over reality.

Criminal lobbyists or idiots (there is some overlap) convinced Congress to pass the Federal Communications Act which banned prison cell phone jammers because the jammers "can also interfere with mobile 9–1–1 calls and public safety communication."

Naturally, Congress didn’t bother to research the situation before passing the law.

Had they done so our esteemed representatives would have learned the maximum range of the cell phone jammer is between 30 feet and 100 meters.

That’s less than a big box retailer's walkie–talkie.

Careful positioning of the jammers would mean civilians outside the walls would not be hindered by the jammers.

Beleaguered 9–1–1 operators would still be fielding calls like: "Help! My cat is stuck in the tree!" And public safety calls, presumably from inside the prison, could use a land line.

No matter how stupid the law is, the law is the law, and real crime is facilitated by prison cell phones while hypothetical 9–1–1 calls go unhindered.

That insane situation may be changing in the near future. Rep. David Kustoff, R-Tenn., and Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., have introduced the Cellphone Jamming Reform Act in their respective branches of Congress.

Kustoff writes, "As cellphone technology has evolved, mobile phones have become easier to conceal.

"They provide endless ways for criminals to communicate with the outside world.

"This important legislation would prevent criminals from conducting complex criminal operations from behind prison walls by allowing correctional facilities to use cellphone jamming systems.

"This technology will protect inmates, guards, and the public at large."

Kustoff is correct. He has the facts on his side. He has logic on his side. In a sane world this reform would pass on a bipartisan voice vote in both Houses.

Unfortunately, this isn’t a sane world and there is always the hypothetical lobby to contend with.

Michael Reagan, the eldest son of President Reagan, is a Newsmax TV analyst. A syndicated columnist and author, he chairs The Reagan Legacy Foundation. Michael is an in-demand speaker with Premiere speaker's bureau. Read Michael Reagan's Reports — More Here.

Michael R. Shannon is a commentator, researcher for the League of American Voters, and an award-winning political and advertising consultant with nationwide and international experience. He is author of "Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!)" Read Michael Shannon's Reports — More Here.

© Mike Reagan


Reagan
There is an easy solution, it’s called a cellphone jammer. These handy devices render mute any cellphone within range, meaning crime kingpins will be reduced to bribing guards to carry messages, just like the old days.
cellphone, communication
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2023-47-16
Tuesday, 16 May 2023 10:47 AM
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