[October 16, 2017]

"The Securus Foundation" - A Non-Profit Organization Dedicated to Improving Reentry Opportunities

Securus Technologies, a leading provider of civil and criminal justice technology solutions for public safety, investigation, corrections and monitoring, announced that it has created, funded and launched The Securus Foundation - a non-profit organization to address solutions aimed at reducing recidivism.

According to the National Institute of Justice, 'Recidivism is measured by the criminal acts that resulted in rearrests, reconviction or return to prison with or without a new sentence during a three-year period following the prisoner's release.' Studies have shown that within three years of release, up to two-thirds of released prisoners are rearrested. Within five years after release, over 75% reoffended. "With over 11 million people cycling through jails and prisons each year, we have a moral and economic obligation to help people from reoffending which contributes to the high cost of incarceration across all counties and states across the country," said Richard A. "Rick" Smith, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Securus Technologies. "Too often returning citizens do not have adequate access to resources to remain successful upon release. We need to prepare released citizens for success because this is an issue that impacts everyone nationally.

"We are supporting the foundation's vision and mission because we want to engage and provide additional support to the challenges the industry must contend with at a deeper level. So far we have learned that focusing on only one barrier to reentry, such as education, is to not understand the full scope of the problem. It has been stated, 'for every eligible and participating inmate, there was an average of two inmates who were eligible and not participating.' This statement highlights the problem The Securus Foundation will overcome with a comprehensive approach to place relevant needs with the right participants. In addition, the foundation's reach will go beyond the prison walls and out into the community to be inclusive of all, even if they will nt participate in programming pre-release," said Smith.

"Our industry takes a lot of flak on rates from inmate advocate groups, which is not justified - as our average audio rate per minute is only approximately $.18 per minute. But there is hardly a mention of the positive benefits that our industry has brought to inmates/friends/family/corrections/law enforcement/taxpayers," said Smith.

Positive Benefits Include:

1) Inmate Tablets

2) Digital Law Libraries

3) Job Searches

4) Online Education Programs

5) Music Downloads

6) Video Downloads

7) Book Downloads

8) Religious Downloads

9) Video Visitation

10) Funding Via Internet, Call Center, Checks, or Mobile Devices

11) Funding Through Commissions of Approximately $5 Billion over the Last Ten (10) Years

12) Confidential Reporting of Crimes within Prisons

13) Online Commissary Ordering

14) Substantial Average Rate Per Minute Reductions

15) Wireless Contraband Containment Solutions

16) Data Analytics to Improve Security/Safety

17) IVR Solutions for Inmates and Friends/Family

18) And more . . .

"We should recognize and appreciate what our industry and facility partners have done for society - specifically inmates and friends and family. We just don't complain - we actually help inmates communicate more, do that safer, and make millions of lives better," said Smith.

The Securus Technologies mission is to Serve and Connect, and the creation of this foundation signifies the inclusion of that mission to returning citizens transitioning from jails and prisons. "Our government Agencies and local community partners cannot and should not be alone in this mission. As the industry leader in Public Safety, Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology, we are investing in a non-profit organization so that it may operate independently and concentrate on this vital issue in our country," said Smith. By focusing on this initiative, The Securus Foundation will collaborate with Cities, Counties and States nationwide to learn and uncover new and unique ways to serve offenders pre- and post- release. The Securus Foundation is accountable to deliver results that benefit society and reduce the burden on government and taxpayers.

The Securus Foundation Board of Governance includes experts in Corrections, Law and Reentry. For more information on the board, go to www.thesecurusfoundation.org.

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/20171016006172/en/

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