Inmates incarcerated may use electronic messaging services provided by third-party providers, with each service having strict security and content restrictions in place.
Cost for messages depends on the facility of residence; families can purchase credits by searching the JPay website to locate an inmate and sending their message through there.
Advantages
Text messaging provides an effective and cost-efficient means of keeping in contact with loved ones in prison. But it must be remembered that texting has some limitations that need to be considered when considering its usage in this context.
Email can often be free; in contrast, prison-based electronic messaging systems generally charge fees. Usually this costs are shouldered by either the inmate themselves or, occasionally, family members who use the system – an additional financial strain placed upon families already paying for an imprisonment of their loved one.
Also, these services may not be user-friendly and can be challenging for incarcerated users to navigate. Many providers utilize shared computer kiosks in recreational areas which offer little privacy; additionally, their character limits prevent inmates from sending lengthy messages – this can be frustrating for incarcerated individuals who wish to express themselves and share their emotions with their loved ones.
Electronic messaging remains an invaluable way for inmates to remain in touch with friends and family while helping to prevent contraband from entering prison via mail. Federal agencies should carefully consider both its advantages and drawbacks when providing these services; their evaluation should consider mental health effects on inmates as well as costs/benefits ratio.
Limitations
Text inmate services provide family and friends a convenient way to send messages to loved ones who are currently incarcerated, but it’s important to note that prison staff will monitor these messages, which may then be used as evidence against them in court cases. Furthermore, jail rules and internal policies can change at any time; any non-approved messages will be confiscated and may lead to criminal charges such as nudity, weapons, gang affiliation signs/gestures threats alcohol illegal activity and credit card numbers being discussed within these messages.
Many jails use controlled email systems such as Corrlinks or JPay to facilitate inmates writing and receiving emails while behind bars. Although these services tend to be monitored and might not offer as much privacy than standard email services, inmates access these kiosks or tablets at their facility to write and receive messages. Corrlinks has a 13,000 character limit per email which shows an inmate how many characters remain during composition.
As well, email systems may not work correctly across all browsers. Depending on which type of browser is being used, formatting issues may arise that prevent certain fonts, foreign symbols and bold text from displaying correctly on an inmate’s device; additionally emoticons or pictures cannot be included within messages sent from inmates – all factors which need to be taken into consideration before selecting an electronic messaging provider.
Costs
Companies providing tablet programs in prisons and jails enjoy an enormous competitive edge: as more prisoners use the service, their profits increase exponentially. Prisoners must pay data access fees as well as music/album/video purchases (plus possible message printing costs), making their costs quickly add up and force families struggling to meet bills to cope.
Advocates and regulators have recently achieved some success in reducing prison phone rates, yet companies continue to move into less regulated markets and offer services like electronic messaging that promise to bring prisoners into the 21st century. Unfortunately, however, its reliability cannot always be guaranteed.
JPay’s e-messaging program charges per character and for attachments; prices vary by state and facility. Family and friends must purchase “stamps” to send messages, photos or VideoGrams; stamps cannot be returned if an inmate rejects or cancels them.
Pricing policies imposed by the company also penalize poorer people who cannot afford its highest bundle, and inmates may even experience limited e-messaging accounts such as being limited in character usage.
Conclusions
Text analysis studies conducted in Texas on the final words spoken by death row inmates before their execution have provided valuable insights into emotional experiences and meaning-making attempts by humans in light of finite lives. Most frequently encountered themes include references to self, messages to family and friends, spiritual references; further research could explore whether these contents help regulate death row inmates’ emotions while also impacting those addressed (cf. Heflick & Foley 2005).
Studies conducted on death row inmates suggest that their last words tend to be positive, often offering comforting messages or spiritual references that help ease their circumstances and stress their responsibility for it.