DOC tells committee falsified legal mail and soaked papers are driving contraband problems

Department of Corrections staff told the House Corrections and Institutions Committee on May 7 that the department is seeing a rise in falsified legal mail and paper soaked with drugs or insecticide used to introduce contraband into facilities.

Al Cormier, chief of operations, described the intake and mail process and recent trends. “Letters that do come in are are opened in front of the individual just to ensure that there's nothing for contraband in there,” Cormier said. He explained that staff inspect incoming mail for hidden substances and that DOC photocopies coloring books and pictures before delivering them to people in custody because inks and coatings can conceal drugs.

Cormier said staff are seeing more counterfeit legal envelopes designed to appear as attorney or advocacy mail; those envelopes sometimes contain synthetic cannabinoids (K2), other newer synthetic drugs and items sprayed with wasp spray. “We're seeing a lot of, recently where legal mail is is being falsified…They come in soaked in k 2, spice…Wasp spray is the biggest 1 now,” he said.

Because legal mail is privileged, DOC said it faces operational limits: privileged mail must be treated differently, and staff cannot read attorney correspondence but must still guard against contraband. Cormier described a new investigative unit and collaboration with the fusion center and the defender general’s office to track falsified legal mail. DOC is evaluating a technology demonstration next week for scanning mail and detecting tampering.

DOC said typical incoming-mail operations include providing each individual seven free stamps per week, opening and inspecting incoming mail in front of recipients, and photocopying photos and children’s drawings to reduce ingestion risk. Stolen or hidden cash found in mail is inventoried and placed in the individual's trust account; the department described a process to scan or otherwise inspect suspicious mail.

Committee members asked whether senders or receivers face consequences. DOC staff said proving the sender’s intent is difficult when envelopes are counterfeit and names can be falsified; holding a recipient accountable requires evidence they solicited contraband. The committee requested testimony about the department’s investigative unit and the planned mail-scanning demonstration to understand detection and enforcement options.

Next steps: DOC will schedule a demonstration of a mail-scanning technology for the committee and provide more information about the investigative unit and recent mail-related incidents.