US Senator James Lankford is pushing for mobile phone jamming technology to be used in Oklahoma prisons and the rest of the country. But he says he has blame because of the very powerful mobile phone lobbyists.
Every year, thousands of mobile phones enter Oklahoma prisons. Gangs use them to organize violent attacks outside the prison walls, drug traffickers use them to trade inside their cells, criminals use them to intimidate witnesses or threaten correctional officers, and predator children use them to talk with children.
DOC officials have shown Newsday 9 dozen boxes filled with nearly 50,000 phones seized from Oklahoma prisoners since 2011. They are introduced into prison kitchens, thrown over barriers, sneaked during visits and smuggled by prison officials and unscrupulous prison staff.
This week, Senator Lankford addressed the problem in the Senate.
“An individual who was a murderer while he was in the state smuggled contraband cell phones to force another to distribute methamphetamine throughout northeastern Oklahoma. He is carrying a methamphetamine ring with his mobile phone inside the prison, “said Senator Lankford.
There is a technology to scramble mobile phone signals in prisons, but federal law does not allow it. Instead, says Lankford, the FCC is conducting just after study.
“Want to know the summary of the latest study published on mobile phones in prisons and blur it? The study basically revealed that we needed more studies on this issue, “said Senator Lankford.
Oklahoma Prison Department Director Joe Allbaugh said he has traveled to Washington several times to try to convince lawmakers to allow jammers to be incarcerated in prisons, but he is constantly giving in to cell phone lobbyists. portable. He says the technology is such that cell phone jammer signals would be confined to prisons and would not impact homes and businesses nearby.
“Most people do not live next to a prison. Most of our facilities are very rural, “said Allbaugh. “We’ve lost enough officers across the country, even here in Oklahoma, because of mobile phone smuggling. And I want to end it.