Jail's phone policy adds injustice and humiliation

People of Bonner County should be aware that a person who is arrested and taken to the Bonner County correctional facility will probably not be able to contact a family member or a lawyer of his or her own choosing. It seems our sheriff has chosen to contract with a telephone company that refuses to process collect calls to Verizon customers.

Is it possible to get any other telephone service in this area? The inmate, presumably innocent and in any event entitled to an attorney, can only call persons who agree to a prepaid account contract with AGM Telecom. It costs $5 just to call the number to find out what the contract is.

The only other option is that the jail sells telephone calling cards to inmates who are lucky enough to have cash to pay for them, in $10 or $20 increments. The cards charge 10 to 50 cents a minute, and per call surcharges running from $3 to $4.10.

Given that all it takes to get arrested is to have alcohol on your breath, even the wealthy citizens of Sandpoint should be concerned that family members may be unable to let anyone know of their predicament. The majority of people in jail are dirt poor, and this is just one more injustice and humiliation heaped upon their crime of poverty.

VAL THORNTON

Sandpoint