'Misinformation out there which we'd like to clear up': Milwaukee County officials discuss jail-issued tablets
MILWAUKEE COUNTY, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Access to tablets for inmates within the Milwaukee County Jail continues being a point of discussion on the campaign trail. Tuesday morning, Sept. 22, the Milwaukee County Committee on Judiciary, Law Enforcement and General Services met to discuss jail-issued tablets for inmates and clarify what was described as "misinformation" and misrepresentation of how the technology works and who pays for it.
"There's some misinformation out there which we'd like to clear up," shared Milwaukee County Deputy Sheriff Director David Rugaber, who presented a report from the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) at the request of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors.
The topic has created a lot of buzz on the campaign trial after a Milwaukee County judge last month called out three inmates for misusing electronic devices within the jails. Those loopholes have been fixed.
Yet, Republican candidate for governor Tom Tiffany is using this to attack his opponent, Democratic candidate and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, for signing the contract that allows each inmate in Milwaukee County Jail to access a tablet.
Tiffany said he'd eliminate tablet access entirely for violent criminals and would have inmates purchase tablets.
However, MCSO noted on Sep. 22, tablets are already paid for by inmates, not by tax dollars, and the program is funded by fees paid by the incarcerated and their families.
"The tablets are beneficial. I don't know why there's any that think otherwise. I think if tablets were unsafe or led to an unsafe environment, there's no way we would have that and across the majority of the U.S. all three levels at the local, state, and federal level," shared Deputy Sheriff Dir. Rugaber.
Tablets, according to MCSO, are used in every level of jails in the vast majority of states in the country. The Wisconsin Department of Corrections, back in 2018, made tablets available to inmates under then-Republican Governor Scott Walker. In July of this year, a similar tablet system was rolled out federally.
"This tablet program is generally not unique. We're not trailblazers when it comes to tablet technology by any means. They've been around for quite some time. Tablets are used at every level of jails within the United States," said Deputy Sheriff Dir. Rugaber.
Tablets cannot access the internet. Laptops, however, can. But those can only be used in secured rooms to review legal materials and cannot be taken back to their cells. Tablets have pre-downloaded education and religious material, with entertainment available for purchase. MCSO compared them to "a basic e-reader" where messages sent "mirrors the long-standing consent model used for collect calls from correctional facilities." Messages are then monitored by an employee, who is paid for by the funds garnered from tablets, and they have a system that flags any "concerning communications."
A former inmate who now creates content for the tablets, Shannon Ross, spoke to the necessity of having tablets in jail noting the value and "benefit they continue to have and the things they engage in for pro-social modalities and better of folks inside and families to exist, there's no doubt about that ... I don't think there's any doubt as the [deputy sheriff director] said that it is a good thing. It's easily a good thing."
Milwaukee County Deputy Sheriff Director David Rugaber
Deputy Sheriff Director Rugaber worries if tablets were not in the jail system, there'd be a destruction of property because there wouldn't be "a constructive way for occupants to spend their time when they're in their cell." He also noted tablets help when it comes to staffing shortages, as inmates are being constructive in their cells.
Chairperson Justin Bielinski shared his appreciation of the "thoroughness and the care" of MCSO to discuss the issue at hand during the committee.
"I think we've all seen the political argument made about these tablets, which I believe to be a disingenuous argument so the chairwoman and myself wanted to make sure could get the truth out there, get the public a forum to weigh in and share the value the tablets do share to the occupants inside our jail," said Bielinski.
At one point during the meeting, Bielinski asked MCSO if the governor has any role in if jails have tablets, to which Rugaber responded, "not to my knowledge, no." However, Rugaber said everyone in the court system and circuit court is aware of the tablet program and has been for some time now.
The sheriff's office noted they've created recommendations for additional safeguards of the tablet program, at the request of the Milwaukee County Board. However, those will be discussed in a closed session, considering it surrounds security at the jail.