As switch to digital nears, prisons say TVs help keep the peaceState ...

Tag : switch

In most Tennessee state prisons, inmates get just a few localchannels on the 13-inch TVs they pay for themselves. The stateplans to mount large antennas on top of the building, and cellswill be connected to the digital service for a small fee, saidTennessee Department of Correction spokeswoman Dorinda Carter.
The state doesn't have a cost estimate yet, so they don't know howmuch of the bill they'll be able to ask the inmates to cover andwhat will come out of pocket. But the cost will not likely deterthem.
"It's a big thing for inmates to be able to have television,"Carter said. "It occupies a lot of time, and keeps their minds offother things that could be dangerous."
Dr. Terry Kupers, a psychiatrist and prison expert at theUniversity of California, Berkeley, said there is clear evidencethat TV privileges can positively affect prisoners. At Indiana'sWabash Valley super-maximum security prison, he said, far fewerbehavior problems were reported among inmates in isolation afterthey were given small TVs.
"You don't want to be managing prisoners who have nothing tolose,'' Kupers said. Some jails have cable
In the state's rural areas where prisoners couldn't pick up localchannels, they already have cable and won't be affected, Cartersaid. That's the case in many county jails, too, where cable wasinstalled a long time ago.
Wilson County Sheriff Terry Ashe said he's not sure yet on thedetails of who's affected by the digital switch, but he's prettysure the few TVs in the jail's common rooms are ready. Inmates arenot allowed TVs in their cells. The TV is not offered much toprisoners in Wilson County jail, a facility Ashe said is now a muchmore tightly run ship. "If we're not ready, (TVs) are not on mypriority list of anything that needs to be replaced right now,"Ashe said.
Davidson County inmates have an extensive backup plan, if any oftheir TVs need replacing. Recently, all the TVs at LP Field wereupgraded, and inmates were called in to do the work. Sheriff DaronHall said they heard the stadium planned to dump or salvage all theolder units, and Hall scooped them up as a backup plan.
While Hall values the TV as a way to help inmates, he's notplanning to incur the expense of going high definition. "We're notconcerned with a prettier picture," Hall said.
Contact Kate Howard at 615-726-8968 or kahoward@tennessean.com .