SUMTER, S.C. — Inmates at the Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center now have access to tablets. This helps them stay connected to the world outside the facility and encourages good behavior.
"It is a big asset to us," one inmate said. "And this is something that everyone seems to look forward to getting every day."
From listening to podcasts and watching movies to reading the Bible and accessing counseling tools, residents at the facility can now use these tablets.
A resident showed an app called "KA Life" which lets him access different educational lessons through Khan Academy.
"This is a really good one," he said about the application. "You’ve got math, science, economics, arts, and humanities. Arts and humanities has stuff to do like grammar, music, U.S. history, world history."
And this resident isn’t alone. Jail Director Patricia Ray said there are 400 tablets at the center which is enough for each inmate to learn from a variety of subjects.
"The purpose of having it is to keep the mind active and not let them just sit and not have anything to be engaged in," Ray said.
Not only can the inmates learn while they’re in the center, but it also encourages good behavior. Ray said residents can pay $5 a month to have their own tablet for a few hours a day.
Even residents who can't pay the monthly fee are able to use tablets with a few free applications available as long as they aren’t facing disciplinary actions.
"It’s also used as a behavior tool because, if they’re not on, you know, good behavior or they’re, you know, wanting to fight, that kinda thing, then they wouldn’t get these," she shared.
Since getting the tablets, Ray has seen a decrease in fighting over phone usage. The facility used to have four phones for 60 inmates in a pod to share. Now, instead of arguing over the limited phones, residents practice good behavior so they can have their very own devices.
"You don’t have that bickering over who’s on the phone list, or who can I call?" Ray said. "They can call them all day long, talk to the family all day instead of on a schedule of talking to them."
In addition to decreasing fights, it also has helped inmates be more productive with their time spent in the center.
"Having this actually gave me something that I was accustomed to outside of the detention center to actually utilize and work," the inmate said. "So, I think I got a lot more work accomplished and gained a lot more knowledge while I’ve been in here utilizing the tablet."
Residents are gaining that knowledge for a low cost. The tablets are offered to the jail through Securus Technologies, which is the company that provides the traditional phone system that’s been in place.
According to Ray, this service was added on to the current plan through Securus. Inmates pay $5 a month, which covers the cost of the tablets. This is a low cost for a high reward, the resident said.
"Every morning, everyone’s happy to get it. They can get in, do what they need to do," he said. "It keeps everybody relaxed, I know that. It gives them a place to just get away if they need to just get away off to a corner by themselves or even come together and commune with each other - fellowship with each other, just showing each other things."