I have heard about state travel guides phone lines being manned by inmates, among other things.
I am all for putting inmates to work, from the county jail on up. And unpleasant difficult work is even better. Perhaps it would be a deterrent for some to clean up their act...but I really think it would be helpful to have them do the jobs that attract illegal immigrants to the country. However, I do not think they should have ANY access to private and esp financial information, even under circumstances where they get no paper or pencils and are frisked before leaving the room. We are talking about criminals, con men, people who have made a living cheating the system.... I am sure some of them have the time and the means to find ways to memorize information.
