This announcement is issued by the office of Attorney General Chris Carr.

Attorney General Chris Carr is calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to promptly authorize the deployment of cell phone jammers within state prisons and local jails. The FCC currently maintains a ban on the use of cell phone signal jammers, a restriction that applies to both state and local authorities. However, contraband cell phones are being utilized in correctional facilities nationwide to orchestrate violent acts and other criminal endeavors, thereby creating a substantial safety threat to correctional staff, visitors, inmates, and the general public.

Carr stated that the most effective method to safeguard the public from the threats posed by contraband cell phones is to permit the implementation of cell phone jamming technology within correctional facilities. However, he noted that the FCC persistently obstructs these initiatives. He emphasized that this antiquated guidance restricts essential law enforcement resources, endangers correctional officers, and facilitates the growth of criminal organizations both inside and outside of prisons. He reaffirmed their dedication to combating violent crime in all its forms, urging the federal government to eliminate this significant obstacle to public safety.

In the state of Georgia, authorities seized 8,074 contraband cell phones in 2023, with an additional 5,482 confiscated in 2024 to date. Recently, a prominent figure from the infamous "Yves Saint Laurent Squad" gang, currently incarcerated, utilized a contraband cell phone to orchestrate the stabbing of an 88-year-old veteran from Georgia. Furthermore, a gang leader from North Carolina managed to arrange the kidnapping of a prosecutor's father using a cell phone while imprisoned. In California, prison gangs exploit contraband cell phones to facilitate murders and drug trafficking operations within the correctional facilities.

“There are hundreds of examples across the country of how contraband cell phones in the hands of inmates have been used as lethal weapons and enabled them to continue their criminal activities. We are outraged that these individuals are continuing these activities and endangering the public,” said Georgia Department of Corrections Commissioner Tyrone Oliver. “As attempts to infiltrate our prisons with contraband cell phones continue to evolve, access to jamming technology is critical to our ability to combat these attempts. We thank Attorney General Carr for his support of our ongoing commitment to public safety and safe prison operations.”

In his correspondence, Carr observed that the Federal Communications Commission's policy is grounded in legislation established in the early 1990s, prior to the time when incarcerated individuals started utilizing illicit cell phones to organize and partake in unlawful and hazardous actions.

Carr also emphasized that 47 USC § 333 does not prevent the FCC from changing its stance to permit state agencies to utilize cell phone jammers within correctional facilities. Moreover, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons has acknowledged the potential benefits of cell phone jammers and has been authorized to deploy them in multiple federal prisons, including at least one situated in Georgia.