California Death Row Inmates Watch Porn, Send Nudes on Taxpayer Tablets

Condemned prisoners on California's death row spend time watching pornography and holding lewd conversations on taxpayer-funded tablets, reports show. The state pursues a rehabilitation approach inspired by Norway.

California issued about 90,000 tablets to inmates in a multimillion-dollar program to connect them with the outside world. The devices allow real-time messages to loved ones as part of a digital equity push. Officials intended them for education, but some inmates pursue adult activities, The California Post reported.

The newspaper interviewed death row inmates who said they bypass security controls. Robert Maury, a serial rapist convicted of strangling and killing at least three women in the 1980s, told the paper he watches pornography on his tablet from a state prison in Stockton.

Inmates send nude images and view porn through a video chat app, Maury said. An outside contact can play porn on their TV for the inmate to see. Maury received a topless photo from a 22-year-old German psychology student seeking his story for a class project. He flirted with her for a while.

Samuel Amador, another serial killer on death row, said porn arrives in 30-second clips. Inmates hold sexually explicit conversations on the tablets. "I watch porn and short clips of my family at the beach," Amador told the Post. "We get around their bullsh*t."

Nathaniel Ray Diaz, a convicted child sex offender at Avenal State Prison, made thousands of calls to a girl he abused and threatened her with a gun, authorities said. Prosecutors said he demanded sexually explicit images, received through a third party.

Jamar Tucker, convicted of killing three men at High Desert State Prison, received videos of women dancing in thongs, despite prohibitions. He uses racy photos for sexual pleasure.

The tablets are free, but usage costs apply: 5 cents per text message and 16 cents per minute for video calls, per the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Sen. Josh Becker, a Democrat, wants free messages for inmates.

"It's the injustice of the whole thing," Becker said. "And not only injustice, but also the illogical nature of charging in a world where telecommunications costs are moving closer to free."

Douglas Eckenrod, former deputy director of California's adult parole operations, told the Post the tablets create a pathway for inmates to groom people. "There are going to be victims that didn’t need to have been victims because of these decisions."

Fox News Digital contacted the corrections department. Gov. Gavin Newsom's office referred questions to the agency.

The department called the tablets tightly controlled education tools offering access to the Bible, education and reentry resources that reduce crime.

California signed a contract with Securus Technologies worth $189 million over six years, potentially $315 million with extensions. The deal charges less than the prior vendor. Some inmates and contacts report message costs of 3 cents, not 5 cents.

Grace Coleman, an inmate at the women's prison in Chino, said new movies cost $8.99 to rent, with 48 hours to watch. "They're making bank. These are like normal world prices."

The state advances the "California model," drawing from Norway's focus on rehabilitation over punishment. It aims to improve inmate and staff well-being, cut recidivism and boost job opportunities for the released.

"The victims I've spoken with about some of the programs that are going on right now… they're really impressed," said Katie James, CDCR chief of the Office of Victim and Survivor Rights & Services. She said victims gain peace knowing programs change offenders.

In March 2019, Newsom imposed a moratorium on the death penalty, halting executions and closing the execution chamber at San Quentin State Prison.