From the Office of the Sheriff Sheriff Dennis L. Dotson

For Immediate Release

NEWS RELEASE

Date: May 21, 2012

Summary:

Sheriff Dotson is pleased to announce that effective May 16, 2012 the Lincoln County Jail has launched a new technology designed to control the televisions viewed by inmates.

Televisions have long been used in jails and prison as a tool to encourage appropriate behavior within the inmate population. Sgt. Tom Graham reports that televisions are viewed during times when inmates are allowed out of their cells for legally required recreation time. “While televisions themselves are not required, they are an effective tool to enforce the facility rules.”

Sgt Graham stated “a long time vision was to make the television more than just a recreational device or electronic babysitter”. The televisions are connected to basic cable and provide minimal programs. Inmates have traditionally been able to, on some level, control what they watch. The new system provides more than just cable and a remote, it allows staff to better manage/deliver what is watched by inmates and when they can watch it.

Some of the features of the new system include the ability to deliver self-help videos and tutorials to inmates so they can begin the process of effective change in their lives. Each of the televisions can “broadcast crawls” that are similar to what you would see on a news broadcast and advertising on the screen that is targeted toward programs and services that could help inmates while in custody and after release. All of these services can be scheduled for automation or can be manually controlled by staff through a web interface. Most of the funds used for the project were acquired through inmate commissary.

Sheriff Dotson stated “Using our inmate televisions for more than just watching TV is a significant step in the Sheriff’s Office efforts to identify cost effective ways to deliver meaningful and successful programs to inmates.” “We can now deliver cognitive behavior and substance abuse education programs through the television, starting the inmate on a self-guided evaluation and change process.”

The technology being used is produced by WEGENER Inc., a national broadcast technology company and was tailored to meet our needs by Dolphinio Business Services of Philomath, Oregon. The two companies have been very instrumental in bringing the jail’s vision to fruition, as they saw it as an emerging business opportunity and more importantly wanted to deliver value to Lincoln County by delivering potentially life changing information to inmates.

For more information on this exciting technology and others being used at your jail, contact Sgt. Tom Graham at (541)265-0702 or email him at tgraham@co.lincoln.or.us