Corrections Officers, Richland Deputies Confiscate Over 800 Phones in County Prisons
More Than 6,000 Phones Collected From State Prisons in 2017
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO)-Contraband continues to be an issue in our state prisons, South Carolina Department of Corrections Director Bryan Stirling said more than six thousand phones were retrieved from state prisons in 2017 and more than seven thousand in 2016. Law enforcement leaders say the Department of Corrections should not have to combat this issue alone.
At a press conference Wednesday, Sheriff Leon Lott said some of his Richland County deputies were able to confiscate more than 800 smuggled cell phones in Richland County last year . Now, Lott is urging other counties to step in and help the department of corrections put an end to the uptick in contraband.
Stirling said after seeing the success Sheriff Lott and Richland County Sheriff’s had, he wants to crack down in other counties, especially those with known contraband issues.
Stiriling and Lott agreed that making stiffer penalties for contraband offenses is critical to slowing down this illegal trend.
“We want to make this a 1-10 year felony for smuggling cell phones in, smuggling weapons in, and smuggling drugs in,” Stirling said.
A bill that would increase the current penalty for being caught with contraband will be debated Thursday in The Senate.
