5 ms·

It's unreal how much money prisons make off of Prisoners' families. Selling items for 2-4x as much as retail, selling them items and not allowing them to give t

It's unreal how much money prisons make off of Prisoners' families. Selling items for 2-4x as much as retail, selling them items and not allowing them to give them away when they leave, making phone calls super expensive, etc. A large majority of this money comes from the Prisoner's family. And because they're prisoners most people will never really care until it happens to them. And this isn't really just a US thing, I know the UK sells them items at far greater than retail and I suspect most countries do.

njovin 4y ago
Let's not forget about spending money per-email when messaging an inmate (and paying extra to include a photo). Is that program administered by the state? Do the funds go toward paying money owed to victims or funding the prisons? Nope. Private companies (like JPAY) are making money hand-over-fist with no benefit to the prisoners nor the victims nor the state.
- granshaw 4y ago
  The GDP-enhancing privatization and financialization must continue, all externalities be damned
soco 4y ago
In Switzerland the internal shops sell at premium prices as well. But regulations are way less intrusive on what you can receive, or on any other aspect as a matter of fact. The theoretical goal of "reeducation" is thus placed slightly closer.
yamtaddle 4y ago
The justice system in general is a huge financial drag on anyone connected to someone accused of a crime. Unless they just cut them loose completely. Court fees. Fees for all kinds of stuff in jail or prison. Lawyer costs. Rehab instead of prison? Pay that (huge, inflated) bill or off to prison they go. Hell I think there are even parole fees, at least some places. It seemingly never ends (I've been lucky not to be close enough to experience it personally, but have seen it from a shortish distance) I'd bet it's a big part of why the poverty/crime cycle is so hard to break. Families already on the margin pushed off the edge by all the expenses associated with having someone close to you get charged with a crime (again, unless you just totally cut them loose and pretend they're dead, not caring at all what happens to them).
- Tangurena2 4y ago
  One previous job I had a part where our application was being used to track court fees and restitution. The anonymized (names & addresses were, the rest was not) data used in the development environment was heartbreaking. Many of the fees are set by state legislators. If you got a $50 fine for "whatever", there would be close to $1,000 added in fees for misdemeanors (things you cannot be imprisoned for more than 365 days). Felonies (things that you can get more than 1 year in prison for) were not handled by this level of court.

njovin 4y ago

Let's not forget about spending money per-email when messaging an inmate (and paying extra to include a photo). Is that program administered by the state? Do the funds go toward paying money owed to victims or funding the prisons? Nope. Private companies (like JPAY) are making money hand-over-fist with no benefit to the prisoners nor the victims nor the state.

granshaw 4y ago
The GDP-enhancing privatization and financialization must continue, all externalities be damned

soco 4y ago

In Switzerland the internal shops sell at premium prices as well. But regulations are way less intrusive on what you can receive, or on any other aspect as a matter of fact. The theoretical goal of "reeducation" is thus placed slightly closer.

yamtaddle 4y ago

The justice system in general is a huge financial drag on anyone connected to someone accused of a crime. Unless they just cut them loose completely. Court fees. Fees for all kinds of stuff in jail or prison. Lawyer costs. Rehab instead of prison? Pay that (huge, inflated) bill or off to prison they go. Hell I think there are even parole fees, at least some places. It seemingly never ends (I've been lucky not to be close enough to experience it personally, but have seen it from a shortish distance) I'd bet it's a big part of why the poverty/crime cycle is so hard to break. Families already on the margin pushed off the edge by all the expenses associated with having someone close to you get charged with a crime (again, unless you just totally cut them loose and pretend they're dead, not caring at all what happens to them).

Tangurena2 4y ago
One previous job I had a part where our application was being used to track court fees and restitution. The anonymized (names & addresses were, the rest was not) data used in the development environment was heartbreaking. Many of the fees are set by state legislators. If you got a $50 fine for "whatever", there would be close to $1,000 added in fees for misdemeanors (things you cannot be imprisoned for more than 365 days). Felonies (things that you can get more than 1 year in prison for) were not handled by this level of court.