Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Corrections Technology topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Cochise County to consider paid tablet, video-visitation contract for jails; company would provide broadband and revenue share
Summary
County staff previewed an agenda item to approve a contract for a combined voice, video and tablet communications system for the county jail that staff says would run on the vendor’s broadband, permit free on-site visits and charge remote users. The contract is on next week’s regular meeting agenda.
Cochise County staff told the Board of Supervisors on Oct. 2 that the county will consider a contract with Combined Public Communications to install in-jail tablets and a remote visitation system across the county’s three jails.
The system would allow free on-site visits at designated visitation centers and charge remote users; staff said the vendor installs its own broadband inside facilities and that the county would receive a monthly commission estimated initially at about $8,000. Staff said text messaging on the devices is limited to roughly 150 characters per message.
Commander Bradshaw and county staff answered supervisors’ questions about whether the system would transfer to a future jail facility and about how attorneys use the system. Bradshaw said the system can be configured for nonrecorded attorney visits and that the vendor indicated the system would be transferable to a new facility.
Supervisors discussed user charges and how visits are structured. Staff said the first 10 minutes of some video calls may be free and that on-site visits at county visitation centers in Sierra Vista and Douglas are free; remote video visits from home would incur a per-minute fee. The agenda description and staff email materials attached to the regular meeting will contain the full contract and price details.
No vote occurred at the Oct. 2 work session; the contract is scheduled as an action item on the board’s regular meeting agenda next week.
