California Department Of Corrections New Telecom Contract Reduces Inmate Phone Call PricesThe California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation announced Monday that it has reduced the cost of phone calls for inmates after signing a new, six-year telephone service contract.
California May Have Paid Out-Of-State Inmates More Than $40 Million In Job BenefitsMore than $40 million in California funding intended to help people left jobless by the coronavirus pandemic probably went to inmates in out-of-state jails and prisons
California EDD Fraud Victims, Lawmakers Frustrated About Latest Unemployment Scam Involving PrisonersProsecutors believe more than $140 million in state benefits have been paid out to California prisoners. This comes on the heels of another big problem with unemployment insurance benefits from the California Employment Development Department (EDD).
Prosecutors: Over 35,000 Unemployment Claims Filed In Names Of Prison Convicts, Including Death Row Inmates Scott Peterson And Cary StaynerA California prosecutor says someone has filed an unemployment claim in the name of convicted murderer Scott Peterson.
California Voters To Review Criminal Justice, Bail ReformsCalifornia voters will consider rolling back a host of criminal justice changes in what amounts to a referendum on whether the progressive state has become too lenient.
Federal Judges Urged To Free Thousands Of California Inmates At Risk For CoronavirusAttorneys representing California inmates late Wednesday filed an emergency motion asking federal judges to free thousands of infirm and lower-security prisoners to prevent what they predict will otherwise be the catastrophic spread of coronavirus.
Peacemaking Effort Among California Prison Gangs Halted After Brawls, RiotsCalifornia prison officials have halted an experiment aimed at forcing warring prison gangs to get along with each other after the inmates wound up brawling and even rioting.
Riot At Soledad State Prison Injures Nearly 60 PrisonersDozens of inmates were injured in a prison riot in Soledad late Wednesday morning and guards fired nine rounds from a rifle as warning shots to break it up.
Inmate Stabs Correctional Officer At Central Valley PrisonAuthorities say an inmate at a state prison in the Central Valley stabbed a correctional officer at a drug abuse treatment facility.
California To Allow Criminals With 3-Strike Life Sentences To Seek ParoleCalifornia will reconsider life sentences for up to 4,000 nonviolent third-strike criminals by allowing them to seek parole under a ballot measure approved by voters two years ago, according to court documents obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday.
California Prisons Investigate 2 Inmate Deaths As HomicidesOfficials in California prisons 200 miles apart are separately investigating the deaths of two inmates as homicides.
Drones Dropping Drugs, Contraband Into NorCal PrisonsDrones are becoming a growing concern among jail guards. That’s because people may try to use them to smuggle in drugs.
$15M Drug Smuggling Crackdown In California Prisons Gets Mixed ResultsThe $15 million spent by California to thwart prison drug smuggling has generated mixed results, researchers found, as increasingly creative smugglers turned to tricks like concealing methamphetamine in a bar of soap or heroin under postage stamps.
Cost To Modernize California Prison Medical Records Nearing $400MA massive project to modernize medical record-keeping for California prison inmates has more than doubled in cost from original estimates to nearly $400 million in just three years.