Tag: inmates

DOJ Won’t Make Inmates Sent Home During COVID Go Back to Prison

Pennsylvania Daily Star Staff

Thousands of inmates sent home during the COVID-19 pandemic will be able to complete the rest of their sentences there as long as they remain compliant, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Tuesday.

A final DOJ rule released Tuesday clarifies that inmates placed on home confinement under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act will not be automatically sent back to prison when the Biden administration lifts the public health emergency, though the Bureau of Prisons retains discretion to impose sanctions on or return inmates who commit infractions. After multiple extensions, the Biden administration announced in January it would allow the public health emergency to expire on May 11.

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For Pennsylvania Inmates, Phone Calls Are Three Times More Expensive

The Center Square

In Pennsylvania, a phone call from a local jail can cost more than three times the cost of one from a state prison.

Thanks to the outsourcing of phone services, high costs get passed off to families of inmates, many of whom are less well-off than the median Pennsylvania family.

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