Montgomery, AL – Inmates who want to check on their Facebook friends or send a quick tweet may be out of luck if a proposed bill is approved by the Alabama Legislature.
The House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee approved a bill Wednesday by Republican Rep. Phil Williams of Huntsville that would ban prisoners from using social networking sites.
Deputy Prison Commissioner Jeff Williams told lawmakers that inmates are mostly denied access to computers and most prison computers can't access social networking sites.
But Williams said inmates use cellphones to access the sites. Inmates are not allowed to have phones, but Williams said they find a way to get them. He said often friends on the outside throw cellphones over prison walls to inmates.
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