SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Inmates in the Sangamon County Jail will soon be allowed more visits, but they will be by video screen.
Sheriff Wes Barr tells The (Springfield) State Journal-Register the system, which should be in place by mid-August, will make the jail more efficient and safer for officers.
Currently, visits occur through thick glass and communication is by phone receiver.
Inmates get two visits a week, now but could get up to five via video.
Brian Dolinar of Urbana is coordinator of the Illinois Campaign for Prison Phone Justice. He says computer screens should only be used to bridge long distances between inmates and families, not when families typically live nearby.
Dolinar also feared for inmate privacy because video screens will be in jail common areas.
