Now, Prisoners’ Money Goes To Fla. First

 Bewilderment has seized the Commonwealth’s prison populations with the introduction of JPay into their lives. 

Effective Sep. 1, unless prisoners and their families use JPay, bank checks and money orders will be returned to the senders. 

That has left many prisoners in a quandary. Many of them come from poor family backgrounds, without much of an education. Most of their families do not own computers. 

Nevertheless, these families now must resort to computers to open up JPay.com, to print out a copy of a money-order deposit form. That slip then needs to be filled out and mailed to JPay, 12884 Biscayne Blvd., Box 221, Miami, FL 33181. 

The selling pitch is, “Want your inmate to receive funds faster? Visit www.JPay.com today and make your money transfer online.” 

Prisoners are already writing letters to this paper and other media complaining about the change. The Pennsylvania Dept. of Corrections refers all queries as to why it signed up with the Florida firm to the JPay internet site for answers. 

Inmates and families were used to the fact a postal money order sent directly to the inmate would be retrieved by the prison mail room and deposited to the credit of the inmate’s commissary account. It was the fastest way to get funds to an inmate in prison. Now it goes to Florida first, then to the Pennsylvania prison via email fund transfer. 

A deposit slip “must be filled out and submitted with every money order,” JPay.com procedures affirm. The State’s various prisons are now making deposit slips available in their visiting rooms. 

Unlike the previous method, which permitted mail to be sent to the inmate along with the money order, JPay will not accept any mail whatsoever.

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