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Many families struggle to pay for phone calls with loved ones in U.S. prisons
Key Excerpts from Article on Website of NBC News
Posted: January 13th, 2020
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/many-families-struggle-...
You have 60 more seconds." "You have 30 more seconds. The female voice interrupted each time Maria Marshall talked on the phone with her son in prison. But the chance to make contact for three or four minutes a day, a few days a week, came with a cost. Marshall spent $120 in just two weeks in July for her son to call her and other relatives and friends. Many states make millions each year in commission off phone calls that families like Marshalls struggle to pay for. Inmate calling services are controlled by two main telecommunications companies, but the Federal Communications Commission says it does not have authority to set price caps on intrastate calls, which account for a majority of prisoner phone calls. Some are now pushing for change. U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and five other senators have introduced a bill calling for just and reasonable charges for intrastate and interstate calling that would give the FCC authority to address inmate calling rates. This allows the FCC to regulate and say you cant have predatory pricing, Duckworth said. Cause thats whats happening predatory pricing. A typical 15-minute prison phone call within Washington costs around $1.65. On the other end of the spectrum, such a call in Kentucky costs around $5.70. Paul Wright, director of the Human Rights Defense Center ... said the system gives prisoners no options. The alternative is they dont talk to their family, Wright, who was incarcerated in Washington from 1987 to 2003, said.
Note: For more along these lines, see concise summaries of deeply revealing news articles on prison system corruption from reliable major media sources.
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