The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
County jail begins detainee tablet program
Gwinnett, company providing devices able to profit from initiative.
Dustin Blevins is recovering from drug addiction in the Gwinnett County Jail, with the help of a tablet.
Blevins, 31, is locked up for violating probation after being charged with felony burglary and possession of a controlled substance in 2021. He says the jail-issued device has helped him focus on healthy activities and allows him to talk to family when his mind begins to wander.
“It’s helping me tremendously,” Blevins said. “It helps keep my mind sharp, because … instead of just sitting in my room doing nothing, I can actually be productive with my time.”
Access to the tablets is a new program introduced last month by Sheriff Keybo Taylor. About 500 of the jail’s 2,300 inmates have the devices, but the plan is to eventually give access to all detainees.
Taylor said the program is an opportunity to reduce recidivism through educational resources and help detainees stay in communication with family members.
But it is also a tremendous money-maker for the county and the company providing the devices.
“I think it’s better for the family, when they can communicate better with people here, it’s better for the folks that are here, you know, so that they can communicate with their family,” Taylor said.
The cost of that communication is high.
Texting prices start at 50 messages for $5.50, with the larg
est package of 500 texts for $18, according to the county’s contract with tablet provider Securus. Video calls cost $5.95 for 30-minute increments, according to the Securus website. Regular calls cost about 16 cents a minute, in 15-minute increments, according to Blevins.
“They’re 15 minute calls, but once the call is over, you can hang up and call right back,” Blevins said.
The Prison Policy Initiative, a criminal justice think tank, says lockup facilities have made millions off the tablets.
“First, the ‘free’ tablets charge users at every opportunity, including above-market prices for phone calls, video chats and media,” the organization said in a 2019 news release.
Blevins also uses the tablet to watch movies, which range in price from $1.99 to $14.99.
Revenue generated in the Gwinnett program will be split between the county and Securus. Gwinnett County Sheriff ’s Office officials are projecting about $600,000 a year in revenue. That money will be placed in the county’s general fund, which is used to pay for county operations, including at the sheriff ’s office.
“They (inmates) have to put money on those devices, or the families put the money on the devices as they would as if they were making a phone call,” Taylor said.
The county has made about $4 million from detainee phone calls since 2020.
A spokesperson for the Southern Center of Human Rights said it’s unclear how effective tablets are at reducing recidivism. Podcasts might be helpful to someone in recovery, but it’s not a cure-all, said spokeswoman Page Dukes.