COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Federal officials this week oversaw the quiz at a South Carolina jail of a cellphone badge jamming technique that some desire will assist pains the venture posed by inmates with smuggled cellphones, officials told The Associated Press.
The quiz took lay above the lesson of five days at a housing unit at broad river Correctional Institution, a maximum-security jail at Columbia, South Carolina, according ought rescue of honesty officials. Assistant lawyer commonplace Beth Williams told AP it's the first time federal officials possess collaborated with officials at a site jail because such a test.
Officials did no free the results of the test, which will be included at a afterward interpret ought be done by the National Telecommunications and information Administration.
The quiz marks promote above the state-level quest ought stamp out contraband cellphone use, which officials possess desire said represents the peak security venture within their institutions. Micro-jamming technique was tested final year at a federal jail - where officials said they were able ought shut down phone signals interior a jail cell, cabin devices about 20 feet (6 meters) away worked normally - besides a decades-old principle says site or local agencies don't possess the authority ought press the public airwaves.
South Carolina Corrections Director Bryan Stirling, who because years has spoken out above the dangers posed by the devices smuggled into institutions by the thousands, told AP he was recently deputized during a special delegate U.S. Marshal, hence giving him the federal site needed ought accompany the jamming test.
"I'm same encouraged by what we witnessed at broad river this week," Stirling told AP above Friday, adding that he's optimistic about federal legislation, introduced final month, that used to agreement site jail officials the capacity ought press signals.
In 2008, South Carolina officials received a waiver from the Federal Communications committee ought accompany a jamming quiz at a different maximum-security prison, at a parade because media and other officials besides no at a jail dorm.
Stirling and other site jail directors employ other measures - alike perimeter netting, monitoring by drone, and scanners - ought find cellphones besides lawyer a jamming technique that used to shut down entire signals during the best possible defense.
In 2017, Stirling testified at a FCC hearing at Washington alongside Robert Johnson, a prior South Carolina corrections officer almost killed at 2010 at a strike orchestrated by an inmate using an illegal phone.
Also that year, an inmate escaped from a maximum-security jail at South Carolina, thanks at isolate ought a smuggled cellphone. at 2018, seven inmates at a maximum-security South Carolina jail were killed at what officials possess said was a group pains above sphere and contraband including cellphones.
The FCC has shown willingness ought career above the issue, holding a sphere hearing at South Carolina and hosting meetings with members of Congress, prisons officials and stakeholders from the wireless industry.
On Friday, Williams said officials are working ought insure prisons possess technological options ought assist them pains the smuggled devices.
"It is same difficult ought invent sure that no contraband gets in," Williams told AP. "We attempt during difficult during we can, besides it's truly difficult ought recess everything."
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Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP
