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California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom is furious over a report claiming that his “digital equity” program has allowed death row inmates to watch pornography and groom children on the outside.
The report at City Journal quoted prisoners and others who said the restrictions on tablets provided by the Newsom program were easily circumvented by those seeking porn and children.
‘We have the receipts — and this is something the governor’s office simply cannot defend.’
Newsom, who is widely considered to be planning a presidential run, railed against the report on Wednesday.
“This is flat-out FALSE. This MAGA nonprofit provides ZERO evidence for its outrageous claims,” read the statement from his press office on social media.
“Their ‘sources’? Convicted murderers and a random guy who doesn’t even live in California. FACT: Prison tablets DO NOT provide open internet access. FACT: Communications are monitored, recorded, searchable, and investigated,” he added.
“FACT: These tablets are are [sic] used for education, rehabilitation, family communication, and reentry support proven to reduce crime — conveniently omitted from this propaganda post,” the statement concluded.
BlazeTV host Christopher Rufo, one of the authors of the report, fired back at the governor.
Rufo posted a list of all the sources cited in the story, including a “former high-ranking California prison official,” a dozen current inmates who say they are accessing porn on the tablets, and “federal prosecutors, who are pursuing charges against a prisoner for grooming a minor through his state-issued tablet.”
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One of the inmates who spoke about his tablet use was infamous rapist and serial killer Robert Maury, who claimed he had been able to get a topless photo from a psychology student in Germany. Maury said the female student hoped to get his comments for a class project in exchange. “Prisoners are using the state-issued tablets for nefarious and lurid purposes,” wrote Rufo on social media. “We have the receipts — and this is something the governor’s office simply cannot defend.”
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