Florida Inmates Spent $11.3 Million on MP3s. Now Prisons Are Taking the Players.

Megalith

24-bit/48kHz
Staff member
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
13,000
Florida inmates have enjoyed the privilege of owning an MP3 player for the last few years, as evidenced by the $11.3 million worth of music (6.7 million songs) purchased thus far. Unfortunately, the Department of Corrections has decided to switch from Access Corrections’ players to JPay’s tablets, which will not allow transfers from the former’s devices. Inmates will have to build their music libraries all over again.

The resulting download spree will funnel more dollars back to the Department of Corrections, which gleans $2.75 from each inmate money transfer onto the JPay-controlled bank accounts used to purchase the services. The department has already been bringing in record commissions from JPay money transfers, even before the introduction of the tablets.
 
they chose to...
"More than 2,000 inmates have volunteered to join an army of 14,000 firefighters fighting at least three massive fires in the state, including 58 youth offenders, in a role that often results in 24-hour shifts where workers face potentially fast-changing conditions that could put firefighter lives in danger within moments."

bs about the mp3s though. shows that prisons are just money making machines...
 
I get that prisons want a cut of that money but damn that's pretty shitty to do. At least transfer some content
 
maybe they'll be smart enough to pay for lossless this time...
who fuck pays for mp3's...
 
Eh, it is not quite that simple, they are in prison, you know.
they volunteered, they were not forced. get it? and spray here, dig here, move this, move that aint that hard.

heres an article that isn't all outrage, surprisingly from cnn.
"After being selected for the program, the inmates participate in a two-week training program where they take part in physical training and are taught firefighting techniques by Cal Fire staff."
""The value of this program is it teaches people life skills that most of us take for granted but many of them came to prison without," he said. "They learn discipline and to show up on time, and some leadership."
https://www.cnn.com/2017/10/13/us/california-fires-inmate-firefighters/index.html
 
To be honest, I'm not quite sure how to explain to you that prison inmates are not really in a position to volunteer of their own free will.

Perhaps an example for something that has been around in the news very publicly the last year or so: A boss makes sexual advances to a subordinate. The subordinate agrees, but is it really free or under threat, imagined or real? At least the subordinate can leave, but good luck with that for the prison inmate.
not the same situation and im pretty sure, even with how shitty they are, they cant force inmates to risk their lives. this is voluntary.
 
  • Like
Reactions: PaulP
like this
maybe they'll be smart enough to pay for lossless this time...
who fuck pays for mp3's...

90% (made this up from experience) of the people out there don't have any idea what quality their media is in. They are the kind of people that are more than happy to watch a cam rip of a movie or rip their CDs into wma's in WMP.
 
Many of them in prison for mandatory minimum sentences, such as just having a gram of weed. Something that is completely not a danger to society. Among many other mandatory minimums that are just there to put people in prison at all costs.

There are more people incarcerated in the USA, than the rest of the world... Combined.

That doesn't add up.

Eh, it is not quite that simple, they are in prison, you know. Though I'm pretty sure that their efforts to risk their lives to fight the wildfires, untrained, are very much appreciated. On top of that the state saves money. Really a win-win case.
 
not the same situation and im pretty sure, even with how shitty they are, they cant force inmates to risk their lives. this is voluntary.

These firefighters are drawn from the pool of non-violent inmates who basically have a choice of risking their lives fighting fires or hoping they don't get assaulted/raped/murdered in a California state prison.
 
These firefighters are drawn from the pool of non-violent inmates who basically have a choice of risking their lives fighting fires or hoping they don't get assaulted/raped/murdered in a California state prison.
I meant the prisons/system are shitty in general. I get that these are non-violent, low security inmates. its well laid out in the cnn article I linked.
 
Wonder how many lawsuits over loss of property the Florida DOC will have to defend from inmates who have little else to do? The grievances were the first step and of course the DOC denied them. Could make for an interesting 5th amendment lawsuit over taking of property without compensation.
 
MP3 players and tablets? In prison? WTF.. I know that I prolly should have spent some time in one when I was younger but I would never expect either one of those while in prison.

I expect a smelly roommate with concrete and metal bars to watch and listen to for entertainment.

No wonder these fuckers are laughing as they get put in the back of the police car. They LIKE it there.

:rage:
 
To be honest, I'm not quite sure how to explain to you that prison inmates are not really in a position to volunteer of their own free will.

Perhaps an example for something that has been around in the news very publicly the last year or so: A boss makes sexual advances to a subordinate. The subordinate agrees, but is it really free or under threat, imagined or real? At least the subordinate can leave, but good luck with that for the prison inmate.

You dont know what you are talking about what so ever. My dad did 8 years in prison in CA, being on a fire crew was the "best" part of his time served.

When your choice is being inside a prison surrounded by walls or out side where you are talked to and treated like a person, you take being outside the walls and cherish it.
 
my only problem with this whole thing, what the fuck are they doing with mp3 players and tablets?
Its a god damn prison, if you are a criminal and are in prison, it is supposed to be a punishment, not a god damned vacation.
 
  • Like
Reactions: PaulP
like this
MP3 players and tablets? In prison? WTF.. I know that I prolly should have spent some time in one when I was younger but I would never expect either one of those while in prison.

I expect a smelly roommate with concrete and metal bars to watch and listen to for entertainment.

No wonder these fuckers are laughing as they get put in the back of the police car. They LIKE it there.

:rage:

I'm glad I realized you couldn't possibly be serious before I replied!
 
I'm glad I realized you couldn't possibly be serious before I replied!
You don't see that they shouldn't be allowed mindless, often violent culture promoting, entertainment, rather should be offered only productive things like books to self educate or time with tutors? (And selective offerings, not anti-White, anti-American Malcom X shit or other propaganda to push Eternal Oppression narratives).
 
An unusual punishment. Well, it _is_ the correctional institution.
 
MP3 players and tablets? In prison? WTF.. I know that I prolly should have spent some time in one when I was younger but I would never expect either one of those while in prison.

I expect a smelly roommate with concrete and metal bars to watch and listen to for entertainment.

No wonder these fuckers are laughing as they get put in the back of the police car. They LIKE it there.

:rage:

You should see our prisons. They have tv:s in rooms, gym and sauna for free every day and they get vacations. Yes you read right - if you kill someone in cold blood you get 4-10 years of prison as a first timer and you serve less than half of that. For that harsh punishment to be more bearable you get vacations (from which you promise to return like a good boy) and if you commit more crimes on your vacation (such as murder someone) you get only a fraction of penalty more because you're already serving for manslaughter/murder. The more you do crime the less you get punished per crime.
 
I wonder if the people wanting prison to be just punshiment, also break their computer when it doesn't works instead of fixing it.

What did you crashand corrupt my game. Fucking eat that pc into submission so it will learn never to crash again.
Some ppl need punishment. but some ppl just need a fucking repair so they dont come back.
 
so they take the old players away with all their bought and paid for music.. and make them use new players, requiring purchase all over again? thats pretty shitty

my only question is who got paid to make this change
 
So the inmates (many convicted for theft or otherwise depriving someone of something) are crying that it's unfair when someone takes something from them that they earned and worked for? Good, now they know what their victims feel like.
 
maybe they'll be smart enough to pay for lossless this time...
who fuck pays for mp3's...
Ah, I guess the old myth survived. Amazon mp3s are indistinguishable by more than chance to direct lossless according to a website full of high end listeners during a study, ie most of them had the gear you'd need to technically tell. And they couldn't... It was a 50 50 split on which track was a lossless and which was an mp3 once the admins disclosed which file was which.
 
so tell us how you were forced to put you life on the line while in prison.
 
Well...if they paid for the old stuff...surely they'll send those MP3 players and music to their home address or leave the item with their personnel belongings....right....right?
 
Back
Top