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THE RISE OF CONTRABAND MOBILE PHONES IN PRISONS
There are approximately 1.2 million men and women currently serving time in U.S. prisons. In the not-too-distant past, prison inmates were largely isolated from civil society while incarcerated. They could have visits from family members and attorneys, of course, and they could – under tight restrictions – make telephone calls and use other communications media.
It’s a different world today, and the difference is being driven primarily by two things: mobile phones and gangs.
Inmates are strictly prohibited from having or using mobile phones, but contraband cell phones are a massive problem for correctional facilities. With their small size, they are relatively easy to smuggle into prisons – hidden in visitors’ body cavities, in food shipments, in other inbound materials coming into prisons, through corrupt prison staff members and even dropped over fences and walls by associates and drones.
The implications of these changes are tremendous. By having access to contraband phones, inmates who choose to continue their criminal activities while they are in prison can do so with levels of command and control that were not possible before. Some of the greatest threats are from members of violent gangs, who can now communicate with associates in the outside world as well as inside prison and give orders, plan and execute crimes, manage financial transactions and order murders and violent attacks on victims, suspected informants and more.
THE IMPACT ON PRISON INTELLIGENCE & SECURITY
Most federal and state prisons have intelligence teams whose missions include monitoring inmate communications, gathering intelligence, identifying threats, preventing inmate violence and escape attempts, and identifying inmates involved in criminal activities outside the prison walls.
Unfortunately, these intel and investigative teams are often understaffed and under-resourced. As the number of seized contraband cell phones has exploded, the challenges of extracting the data, analyzing it, storing it and gaining actionable insights from it have also grown.
Consider the numbers: In one state alone – Georgia – correction officials seized 8,074 contraband phones in 2022. In Oklahoma, officials have seized an average of one phone for every six inmates; in Mississippi, one for every 10 inmates; and in South Carolina, one for every three inmates. Using the “one for every six” ratio would generate 200,000 seized phones per year for the U.S. inmate population.
No wonder correction department investigators are struggling to keep up.
The dual challenges of contraband mobile phones and violent gangs, combined with under-resourced intelligence and investigative teams in correctional institutions, make a strong case for applying technology solutions to address a problem primarily enabled by new technologies (mobile phones).
LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY TO COMBAT PRISON CRIME
Several technologies are currently being used to solve these challenges. One angle of attack is to use technology like radio frequency detection (RFD) devices to discover and seize contraband phones. Another is to use jamming equipment to block the functioning of unauthorized mobile phones inside prisons.
Another technology that can play a critical role is decision intelligence software, which enables investigators to compile and integrate vast volumes of data from mobile phones and other sources and to quickly analyze that data to gain actionable insights about threats and criminal activity. A relatively high proportion of the criminal activities these violent gangs are engaged in involve drug trafficking and distribution, and the violent crimes that those activities spawn in the turf battles and competition that are part of the trade. In recent years, several prosecutors have successfully utilized the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act to prosecute these prison gang cases, making use of the law’s provisions that hold members of a criminal “enterprise” liable for the group’s crimes and applying the relatively severe sentences defined by RICO.
Building a strong RICO case can be demanding, often requiring collaboration by multiple law enforcement agencies ranging from local sheriff’s offices to state police to the FBI, ATF and other federal agencies. Similarly, discovering and mapping a gang organization is resource intensive, often requiring the analysis of hundreds of hours of calls and texts as well as analysis of images and video, including the creation of timelines to document the relationship between orders being given and violent acts committed, as well as other events. Investigators must identify gang leaders, different roles, how the gangs function and more.
Decision intelligence software ideally suits these challenges, enabling almost instant visualization of social networks (like a gang) and identifying leadership and influence roles. The technology’s artificial intelligence capabilities automate the analysis of audio, video and still images to create transcripts and language translations (if needed) so under-resourced intelligence teams can get ahead instead of falling behind. These software platforms make it easy for law enforcement agencies to share information, so collaboration becomes a practical reality, not wishful thinking. Investigative cases can move faster and be resolved using fewer resources.
An excellent example of the complexity and challenges of these types of cases is the Insane Gangster Disciples case and indictments announced in December 2020 by the U.S. Department of Justice on behalf of multiple participating law enforcement agencies, including the South Carolina Department of Corrections. A total of 40 people were charged under the RICO Act and a related act in connection with gang leaders directing “a sprawling criminal enterprise … <and orchestrating> … murder, kidnapping, firearms distribution, and an international drug operation” from behind bars. Almost three years later, prosecutors announced that the last one of the 40 defendants had pleaded guilty and been sentenced in the case, which involved work by more than 10 local and federal law enforcement agencies.
Investigations into criminal enterprises within prisons must be efficient, effective and successful. Collaboration is essential to do that. Fast, efficient data analysis and visualization are key. Correctional agency leaders – just like police leaders “on the outside” – need advanced technology like decision intelligence tools to meet these challenges and prevent criminals from continuing to cause harm from within a prison cell.