The bipartisan bill would upgrade the charge of smuggling of contraband cellphone into a federal prison from a misdemeanor offense to a felony. 

Getting contraband cellphones out of prisons is very near and dear to my heart as I lost my husband–and my children lost their father–due to this. My husband was brutally murdered because he confiscated cell phones in a federal prison. And inmates used a contraband cellphone to put out a hit on him. Cell phones allow inmates to engage in and coordinate criminal activities both inside and outside the prison, including drug trafficking, extortion, violence, etc. I believe addressing this is crucial for the safety and security of our communities, and the employees of the Federal Bureau of Prisons,” said Mrs. Helen Albarati, widow of Lt. Osvaldo Albarati.

There has clearly been an increase in the smuggling and possession of contraband cell phones in our Federal Prison System. These phones are known to have been used to conduct criminal business such as drug dealing and even putting contracts on individuals, both inside and outside of prison walls,” said Don Williams, President, Voices of JOE. “This bill proposes a much-needed increase in the penalties for any individual found in possession of a cell phone in the prison population.  Due to the criminal purposes of these phones, the penalties for possession of them must be in keeping with the harm they cause.”

The legislation is named in honor of Lieutenant Osvaldo Albarati, a Bureau of Prisons (BOP) correctional officer who was murdered after completing his shift at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) Guaynabo in Puerto Rico in 2013.