Cell Phones In Prison

Jillian Bandes | May 12, 2009 10:03 AM

The Communications Act of 1934 prohibits the government from jamming cell phones anywhere -- even in prisons. But Congress is considering a reversal of that rule, and Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley thinks that's a great idea.

O'Malley is asking the Federal Communications Commission to allow a demonstration of cell phone jamming at a prison in his state, despite the FCC's denial of previous requests for jamming demonstrations. Eli Lake at the Washington Times quotes an O'Malley spokesman saying the "time is right" for this legislation to become the law of the land.

...[Cell phone] confiscations helped reduce serious assaults by inmates on staff by taking away a tool that inmates can use to coordinate attacks - resulting in a 32 percent drop from 2006 to 2008. Mr. O'Malley wrote that serious weapon assaults are down 75 percent over the same period.