Third-party mail scanning is coming to Minnesota prisons after numerous drug incidents

To crack down on drugs and other contraband entering the state's prisons, the Minnesota Department of Corrections is rolling out a new mail management system through a private provider based in Maryland.

The state's new half-million-dollar contract with TextBehind comes after a multi-day lockdown at the Stillwater Correctional Facility in September in which nine correctional officers were treated for exposure to synthetic marijuana, according to the Department of Corrections.

While agency officials are still investigating the incident, they believe the mail was soaked in K2 and then smoked in prison.

Commissioner Paul Schnell tells 5 INVESTIGATES that his agency is seeing an increase in similar cases – an estimated two dozen workers are being treated for drug exposure this year – and that immediate action is needed.

Currently, correctional officers at some of the state's facilities scan incoming mail and make copies for incarcerated people.

“This creates incredible efficiency for us, and right now we’re investing a lot of time and a lot of money,” Schnell said. “In some cases, toner costs at one facility alone were approaching $20,000 per month.

“When we started adding, look at the business side: This offer from the provider, in our opinion, is a money saver in the long run and makes it really, absolutely safer because that mail never arrives at the facility,” he added.

Defense attorney Jack Rice says backlash is to be expected and legal action is possible.

“The dehumanizing part of this really can’t be ignored,” Rice said of the fact that inmates won’t receive the original mail.

Another point Rice says is the impact this will have on inmates who follow the rules.

“The right of those who did everything right under these circumstances is that they just get better, and that could make them even worse,” Rice added.

An attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota, Ian Bratlie, submitted the following statement.

“Drugs by mail is not a new problem, but the way the state deals with it is becoming increasingly problematic. We are seeing courts and states increasingly restricting the constitutional rights of groups—be they inmates, immigrants, or homeless people—in the name of safety. The DOC has better options for dealing with this problem than violating all the rights of Minnesota inmates. And the involvement of third parties is another example of taxpayers bearing costs that prisons themselves should bear.”

RELATED: Multiple investigations into illegal drug smuggling at Stillwater prison have been launched

The new system, which goes live Friday, requires family and friends to send mail to the TextBehind facility, located about 20 miles north of Baltimore. The company will process the mail and return copies to Minnesota correctional facilities.

TextBehind also has a free mobile app that family members can use to stay in touch with incarcerated people.

The change will also affect the way detainees communicate with lawyers and others who use legal mail. Now lawyers and similar senders must be verified with the DOC via the text-behind system.

“This initiative goes beyond safety,” Schnell said in a statement. “It represents our commitment to modernizing correctional facilities for the benefit of staff, inmates and their families.”

RELATED: Minnesota DOC addresses security concerns at Stillwater prison

The nonprofit, nonpartisan Prison Policy Initiative estimates that at least 14 more states were scanning mail in 2022 — including at least two more that use TextBehind. A year earlier, Wisconsin corrections officials announced a partnership with TextBehind after reporting a similar increase in drugs sent through the mail.

The Prison Policy Initiative warns of a “chilling effect” created by email scanning, as people don't want their communications scanned into a searchable database. Schnell also expected some resistance after hearing similar complaints about the lack of the actual, physical mail piece.

“The goal of safety must take precedence over these concerns,” Schnell said. “And I think people understand that it’s challenging and difficult, but here we are.”