Investigation Reveals California Death Row Inmates Use Free State-Funded Tablets To Watch Pornography, Groom Minors

California death row inmates are exploiting state-issued tablets to access pornography and contact minors, raising urgent questions about Governor Gavin Newsom's prison reform programme.

A City Journal investigation published on 13 May 2026 found that condemned prisoners are using taxpayer-funded devices to watch pornographic content, conduct sexually explicit conversations, and in at least one federal case, sexually exploit a child. The exposé centres on a £145 million ($189 million) tablet contract covering nearly 90,000 state prisoners, issued under an initiative the Newsom administration framed as a step toward 'digital equity' for incarcerated individuals. A former senior California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) official told reporters the abuse may involve thousands of child victims.

The £145 Million Tablet Programme and Its Absent Safeguards

California's tablet programme began as a pilot in 2018 and reached nearly all state prisoners by 2023. Under Governor Newsom, the CDCR awarded a new four-year contract to Securus Technologies to replace the previous vendor, Viapath.

CalMatters reported in March 2026 that the Securus deal runs to £145 million ($189 million), with provisions for four one-year extensions that could push total expenditure to approximately £242 million ($315 million).

The state positioned the rollout as a rehabilitation tool, providing inmates access to educational content, family communication, and legal resources. Critically, CDCR regulations do not restrict device access based on offence type. Child sex offenders, serial killers, and rapists receive the same unrestricted tablet allocation as any other prisoner, with no age verification applied to incoming communications.

Death Row Inmates Describe Evading Content Filters

City Journal reporters contacted dozens of condemned prisoners directly, and those who responded described a consistent pattern of abuse. Robert Maury, convicted of three murders and a rape in the 1980s and now held at a Stockton facility, told the outlet he received a topless image from an outside contact and has watched pornography relayed through live video calls. He said inmates who grew up with the internet consistently find workarounds to state content filters.

Samuel Amador, sentenced to death for murder, described cycling between explicit videos delivered in '30-second clips' and footage of his family. He acknowledged guards occasionally intercept lewd messages but said prisoners routinely circumvent those controls. Jamar Tucker, held at High Desert State Prison for killing three men, confirmed he uses sexually suggestive images received via the tablet for personal gratification.

The CDCR, when contacted by City Journal, described the devices as 'tightly controlled education tools' that provide inmates with 'access to the Bible, education, and reentry resources that actually reduce crime.' The accounts given by named death row inmates stand in direct contradiction to that characterisation.

A Federal Indictment and a Child Kept on the Line Until Midnight

The most serious documented case involves Nathaniel Ray Diaz, 21, of Greenfield, California. According to a DOJ press release dated 21 April 2025, Diaz was already serving a three-year sentence at Avenal State Prison for lewd acts against a 12-year-old when he used a CDCR-issued tablet and prison phone system to contact the same victim again, in violation of an existing 10-year no-contact order.

Federal prosecutors allege Diaz placed thousands of calls to the child and directed her to create and transmit sexually explicit images. The victim told investigators Diaz forced her to speak with him through the tablet 'for hours, every day' from the time she arrived home from school until the prison phones switched off at midnight. When Diaz learnt that someone had reported the communications to law enforcement, he allegedly instructed associates to destroy evidence.

A federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment: sexual exploitation of a minor, attempted receipt of child sexual abuse material, and obstruction of justice. The Eastern District of California Attorney's Office confirmed to City Journal that Diaz remains in federal custody awaiting trial. If convicted on all counts, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years.

Belated Restrictions and a Governor Who Shows No Sign of Reversing Course

Douglas Eckenrod, a former deputy director of California's adult parole operations, told City Journal he raised concerns about pornography access and child grooming when the tablet expansion was first debated internally. Those warnings were reportedly set aside. He now estimates that 'several thousand' children may currently be in contact with prisoners through the network, and said he would 'bet his pension' that child sexual abuse material exists on the devices. These are Eckenrod's personal assessments based on his professional experience, not documented findings by investigators.

In April 2026, the CDCR formalised new regulations formally banning obscene text messages, sexually explicit images, and sexual conduct during video calls. Death row inmates told City Journal these restrictions remain straightforward to bypass. No age verification system for incoming contacts is in place, and no access restrictions by offence type exist in the current regulatory framework.

Governor Newsom has offered no indication that he intends to restrict the programme. The Securus contract, which already permits four one-year extensions, could run until total public expenditure approaches £242 million ($315 million). At least one Democratic state senator has separately called for prison e-messaging to be made free of charge, which would expand usage further.

The tablet programme, built on the language of rehabilitation, has created a documented pathway for exploitation that the state's own former officials now say was foreseeable and entirely preventable.