One Phone Call Is a Myth?

[Rageaholic]

It's amazing the stuff you can learn from cracked articles.

It's the last myth that surprised me, apparently, they don't have to give you your one phone call in jail.

I can sort of see the reasoning for this with prisoners who were sentenced by due process (even though I hate the idea of taking away common privileges to control others). But for people who were just picked up off the street by cops? What the hell?

[s_stabeler]

provided they allow you to contact your lawyer, then yes, phone calls are a privilege in prison.

Oh, and it's NOT done to control people- it's to prevent the suspect from arranging to have evidence tampered with. ( witnesses intimidated, evidence destroyed) which is why mots people are allowed reasonable use of the phone.

[Andara Bledin]

It's also done to control people. In jail and prison, it's a carrot.

They most often let you call someone when they pick you up, but if you're being an asshole, they can keep you from contacting anyone other than your lawyer. I'm fairly sure that they can't prevent you from talking to your counsel. Within reason, of course.

[lordlundar]

It's the last myth that surprised me, apparently, they don't have to give you your one phone call in jail.

Did you miss the part about how they're essentially pay phones? Or that you can call whoever you want as long as the other person accepts the charges?

And quite frankly, it's no different than being grounded and your phone is taken away as a teenager. Only real difference is it is an adult acting like a shithead teenager.

*sigh* This "police and the law are evil" stint is getting old rage. Not every police officer is out to get you and the legal system, imperfect as it is, is still a preferred choice over a lawless society and is not a method to subjugate. If you're being targeted enough to justify this level of hatred and it's not still a screaming campaign over a minor incident, maybe it's time to look inward instead of raging outward.

[Rageaholic]

^

I missed the payphone part. In that case, it would make sense to let them use it. That is unless they're crime lords ordering a hit (as Stabler said). It looks like most jails or prisons are not as assholish about one phone calls as the article made it out to be.

[Titi]

It does exist but you have to be processed first. If you come in irate demanding your phone call then you will have to wait even longer than others. The payphones are there so that people who don't want to wait can call someone.

[Panacea]

I can sort of see the reasoning for this with prisoners who were sentenced by due process (even though I hate the idea of taking away common privileges to control others). But for people who were just picked up off the street by cops? What the hell?

I used to work as a jail nurse. People get to use the phone, believe me. Once they're actually in jail, that is. Not at the police station, and NOT when you're at the hospital getting a medical clearance to go TO jail.

It's a security issue; if you can call before you get to jail, you can call to have someone come take you away from the cops. Bad idea for the cops (and the nurses in the ER).

Once you're in booking, you can use the phone after you've been booked into the system. They're pay phones. Most of the inmates use them calling back and forth between family and bail bondsmen trying to get bonded out.

Once on the blocks, there's phones in there too. You are given a code, you call collect, and the person being called can refuse to take the call. This is important for people like victims.

Calls can and are recorded. If you confess to your crime to your buddy while on the phone in jail you are pretty much fucked.

If you ask for a lawyer during interrogation, the interrogation has to stop until your lawyer (court appointed if you can't afford one) gets there. So they just lock you up until then; they can keep you up to 72 hours with no charges in many jurisdictions. Still, your best advice is to shut up.

If you need medication and tell the police they may contact your family once you're booked . . . or not. Or you can do it from booking. If your family brings your meds to the jail, what happens with them depends on jail policy. Some jails will not allow inmates to take medications not prescribed by the jail. But the jail nurse will probably at least look at them to see what you're on.

When I was a nurse in a county jail, I would accept most medications except narcotics or other controlled substances. HIV meds, anti-rejection meds, or diabetic meds were considered high priority. I would call the doc to get an order for the inmate to continue taking them in jail for something like those meds; everything else would have to wait until you saw the PA for your physical in a week (if you didn't bond out before then).

It does exist but you have to be processed first. If you come in irate demanding your phone call then you will have to wait even longer than others. The payphones are there so that people who don't want to wait can call someone.

Assholes who don't go with the program don't get processed. No process, no phone. It's that simple.

[ebonyknight]

Assholes who don't go with the program don't get processed. No process, no phone. It's that simple.

As much as I hate cops, I can't fault that logic. As abusive as they can be, they aren't generally known for grabbing innocent people off the street.

If you've been locked up, you have probably done something. Own up to it.

[Kheldarson]

As much as I hate cops, I can't fault that logic. As abusive as they can be, they aren't generally known for grabbing innocent people off the street.

If you've been locked up, you have probably done something. Own up to it.

And, honestly, even if you haven't done something, go with it to get out that much quicker and not, you know, actually end up doing something (like resist arrest and the like).