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Securus Technologies: Wireless Containment Solutions Could Have Prevented Latest Inmate Facebook Live VideoSecurus Technologies, a leading provider of civil and criminal justice technology solutions for public safety, investigation, corrections and monitoring, shared the nation's shock and dismay as yet another Facebook (News - Alert) Live video filmed by an inmate with a contraband cellphone circulated the internet. The 3 ½ minute video filmed inside Evans Correctional Institution allegedly depicts 31-year-old Jose Ariel Rivera, an inmate serving a 10-year sentence for burglary, brandishing a knife. According to Rivera's public inmate profile, this is not the first time he has been caught with a cellphone. Incidents like this and the many others like it, are what Securus' Wireless Containment Solutions (WCS) is designed to detect and prevent. Had Securus' WCS been installed, Rivera's phone would have been unable to connect to the commercial wireless network. "In March of this year, the FCC (News - Alert) voted to streamline the process for correctional facilities to access contraband interdiction technology, like Securus' WCS, by reducing the amount of paperwork and requiring wireless carriers to work with facilities," said Richard A. "Rick" Smith, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Securus Technologies. "With these recently lightened regulations, residents should b asking their elected officials why they haven't yet taken the first steps to keep these dangerous weapons out of the hands of inmates," said Captain Robert Johnson, a former South Carolina corrections officer and victim of a violent attack coordinated by an inmate with a contraband cellphone. "As I told the Daily Caller last week, I've seen Securus' WCS work first-hand, and believe it is the most effective way to keep the public safe." Last month, Securus released data collected using its Wireless Containment Solution demonstrating both the severity of our nation's contraband cellphone problem, and the efficacy of the technology. Between July of 2016 and July of 2017, Securus' WCS detected and prevented over 1.7 million illegal communication attempts in eight U.S. correctional facilities. "While still disturbing, fortunately this latest news is just about a video," continued Captain Johnson. "I pray to God every day when I open the newspaper that I'm not going to read another story like mine or Kendarius Edwards Jr's., the nine-month-old whose violent murder was orchestrated by an incarcerated gang member with a contraband cellphone." "Securus has invested over $40 million and counting into WCS to date, and will continue to develop its proven solution to ensure that it continues to be the most effective means of eradicating contraband cellphones in our nation's correctional facilities," concluded Smith. ABOUT SECURUS TECHNOLOGIES Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and serving more than 3,450 public safety, law enforcement and corrections agencies and over 1,200,000 inmates across North America, Securus Technologies is committed to serve and connect by providing emergency response, incident management, public information, investigation, biometric analysis, communication, information management, inmate self-service, and monitoring products and services in order to make our world a safer place to live. Securus Technologies focuses on connecting what matters®. To learn more about our full suite of civil and criminal justice technology solutions, please visit SecurusTechnologies.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170814005871/en/ |
