Post by doc on May 23, 2010 19:51:06 GMT -5
South Bend - A new Indiana Department of Correction rule says extended family members and friends can visit only one inmate every six months.
Department spokesman Doug Garrison says the rule that took effect this year is aimed at reducing trafficking in contraband. He says it will help Indiana prisons better regulate who is coming into their facilities and possibly carrying prohibited items.
Garrison says the rule applies only to extended family members and does not affect fathers, mothers, children, sisters, brothers or grandparents of inmates.
But some people say the rule discriminates against people such as aunts and uncles who have helped raise relatives who go behind bars. Tracy Franklin of South Bend says she's forced to choose among a son, a nephew and cousin all in prison.
Department spokesman Doug Garrison says the rule that took effect this year is aimed at reducing trafficking in contraband. He says it will help Indiana prisons better regulate who is coming into their facilities and possibly carrying prohibited items.
Garrison says the rule applies only to extended family members and does not affect fathers, mothers, children, sisters, brothers or grandparents of inmates.
But some people say the rule discriminates against people such as aunts and uncles who have helped raise relatives who go behind bars. Tracy Franklin of South Bend says she's forced to choose among a son, a nephew and cousin all in prison.