Facebook in Prison?

A recent story reveals that prisoners in Britain are using their Facebook accounts to terrorize and harass their victims; some were jailed for murder and assault. The offenders boldly utilize their statuses and postings to prolong their victim's suffering. This revelation raises many issues, particularly the rights of convicts, or those detained by law enforcement in general. British authorities indicated that they ban inmates from accessing the internet, minus educational purposes, but I think many would agree that there is not a large volume of (valuable) educational content on Facebook-profiles, applications, statuses, etc.

Many questions arise, the first of which is, why are inmates allowed or able to gain access to the internet, and even Facebook? Are there laws against inmates and social networking websites? How about restraining orders for victims for the internet? Could the inmates be punished further for terrorizing their victims further via Facebook-a longer sentence, the hole, etc.

These are concerns that more than likely apply to inmates in U.S. prisons and jails. British officials have even considered banning ex-convicts' access to Facebook. How would this idea fair in America? How would this violate or uphold the released prisoners' rights? Is internet access a right that prisoners relinquish when they are incarcerated? Is the internet (social networking sites) now considered a basic right (avenue for freedom of expression) or privilege?

I believe that this issue should be debated, and I am sure it will be in the near future. The fact that prisoners can extend the anguish and anxiety of their victims is saddening; part of the reason they are incarcerated is so that they are not able to harm their victims, or others. It will be interesting to see how Britain handles this situation, along with how it will affect the granted rights of convicts along with policy in U.S. prisons.