Orgasms are contraband in California prisons, where sex between inmates, like visible masturbation, is illegal. But just as black market economies for cigarettes and drugs thrive behind bars, so does an illicit sex trade.
That doesn't mean STDs should also thrive.
In July, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation installed condom dispensers in four state prisons: San Quentin, Corcoran, Mule Creek, and California Medical Facility in Vacaville. Three to four more institutions will follow each month over a five-year period.
The California Correctional Peace Officers Association, the prison guard union, predicts disaster.
"Condoms can be used to hide or transport drugs, be melted down into stabbing weapons, or be used as slingshots to fire projectiles," reads a statement from Chuck Alexander, president of CCPOA. "They're also the perfect balloon for 'gassing' officers." ("Gassing" is when inmates throw urine, feces, or other bodily fluids.)
Joe Orlando, a spokesman for the CDCR, dismisses talk of weaponized condoms. "It's been very uneventful," he says of the program, adding that as recently as two weeks ago, none of the four prisons reported any condom-related infractions.
This is partly because safeguards are built-in. Condom dispensers are made from the same bulletproof material as prison guards' riot shields (250 times stronger than glass), so tampering won't yield much. And since inmates are allowed three free condoms at a time, supply and demand isn't an issue. Disposal is a concern, albeit a minor one since prison sewage systems have accommodated flushed condoms without needing an upgrade.
"Uneventful" as it may be, the program is certainly busy: In the first six weeks, approximately 13,000 prisoners accessed more than 21,000 condoms. It's also cheap. The CDCR spent about $128,000 to launch the program — or $1.17 per inmate. Compare that to the estimated $1,000 per day to treat an inmate with Hepatitis C, the $84,000 cost of a 12-week Hep C treatment course, or the $24,000 to $60,000 annual cost of HIV regimens.
"CDCR is covering all expenses itself and will continue to do so," Orlando notes.
Condoms for inmates may be a novel — and controversial — idea in California, but the San Francisco County jail has had a similar program since 1989 (L.A. County has offered condoms since 2001). Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi says the new statewide initiative "stops way short in not mandating this practice for municipal jails," adding, "Almost all county jail systems in the state haven't opted in."
Condom-related violations at the jail have been "minimal," Mirkarimi says, and the health benefits far outweigh the vigilance required.
California doesn't track all STDs among inmates, but according to the CDCR, 987 inmates currently have HIV, while 9,329 inmates tested positive for Hepatitis C (which isn't always sexually transmitted) in the most recent fiscal year.
"HIV is far more likely to be spread by dirty needles in prison, where drug use is common," the prison guards complain. "Will we be passing out clean needles next?"
Not a bad idea.
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