‘A jail in Dartmouth, Massachusetts is ending in-person visits to inmates and replacing them with Skype-like video calls. The move is supposed to crack down on drug smuggling, prison officials said.
In the coming weeks, visitors who wish to talk to their loved ones at the Bristol County House of Corrections will be taken to a trailer set up on the prison grounds and outfitted with rows of video conference equipment, according to Boston’s WCVB-TV.
“We want to keep visitors out of the secure portion of our jail,” Bristol County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jonathan Darling told WCVB. He said they’ve had issues with drugs being left in the visitor’s room.
Darling told Quartz that it was also about “convenience” for the families, who now won’t have to go through security to visit their loved ones. He said the visitors weren’t losing any contact with the inmates, because up until now visitors and inmates were separated by glass barriers.
Remote video conferencing will also be possible, but like phone calls from the jail, visitors will be charged for video calls. Fees have yet to be determined.’
Read more: Massachusetts jail to ban prisoner visits for video conferencing

‘A jail in Dartmouth, Massachusetts is ending in-person visits to inmates and replacing them with Skype-like video calls. The move is supposed to crack down on drug smuggling, prison officials said.
In the coming weeks, visitors who wish to talk to their loved ones at the Bristol County House of Corrections will be taken to a trailer set up on the prison grounds and outfitted with rows of video conference equipment, according to Boston’s WCVB-TV.
“We want to keep visitors out of the secure portion of our jail,” Bristol County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jonathan Darling told WCVB. He said they’ve had issues with drugs being left in the visitor’s room.
Darling told Quartz that it was also about “convenience” for the families, who now won’t have to go through security to visit their loved ones. He said the visitors weren’t losing any contact with the inmates, because up until now visitors and inmates were separated by glass barriers.
Remote video conferencing will also be possible, but like phone calls from the jail, visitors will be charged for video calls. Fees have yet to be determined.’
Read more: Massachusetts jail to ban prisoner visits for video conferencing