The Lucerne government wants to relax the ban on mobile phones in prisons (symbolic image). (Image: Adobe Stock)

The canton of Lucerne wants to relax the rules for open prisons. Specifically, some inmates should be allowed to own a cell phone. This is a first for Switzerland – but it comes with conditions.

Along with weapons and drugs, mobile phones are among the items that are subject to the strictest bans in Swiss prisons. Nevertheless, stories keep circulating about how inmates creatively smuggle mobile phones behind bars. In Lucerne, this will no longer be necessary in the future. At least in open prisons.

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As the Lucerne government council wrote in a statement on Wednesday, it has decided on a partial revision of the prison ordinance as of October 1. This includes: Inmates of the Wauwilermoos correctional facility will in future be allowed to use cell phones and other communication devices for personal use – in a first step at least for certain tasks.

For e-banking, apartment hunting or homework

In response to a request from zentralplus, the Lucerne Department of Justice and Security (JSD) explains: “The digitization of the outside world is becoming more and more of a challenge for the inmates and the Wauwilermoos correctional facility. The inmates in open prison are in training, have to find a job, apply online, are looking for accommodation or have to make payments independently via e-banking. More and more everyday activities can or must be carried out via mobile phone.”

Therefore, the plan is now to gradually allow mobile phones. In concrete terms, in a first step, private mobile phones will be used selectively and under supervision for looking for accommodation or a job, as well as for doing homework when completing an apprenticeship.

This is how other prisons handle it

The relaxation corresponds to the principles of open prison, the aim of which is to correspond to general living conditions as much as possible. “Open prison is aimed at preparing the inmates for their integration into society and thereby achieving long-term crime prevention effects among the inmates. The Wauwilermoos correctional facility attaches importance to the professional and social reintegration of the inmates for the period after their sentence has been served,” writes the Department of Justice and Security.

By allowing cell phones, the Lucerne prison system is taking a pioneering role. In no other canton in Switzerland are cell phones currently permitted for inmates. This is evident from the house rules of several prisons in other cantons. Sometimes there are special phone booths, sometimes the prison provides cell phones, but these must then be returned. The Lucerne JSD also says that it is not aware of any other prison where cell phones are permitted.

However, digitization in open prisons is a major issue in all cantons. With the partial revision of the prison ordinance, the government is now creating the legal prerequisites to address the issue. The experience from Wauwilermoos will have to show how far the relaxations will go.

Marc Winner

Likes to write about hard facts and bizarre scandals. Journalist for online, print and television for over ten years. The Lucerne resident has been writing for zentralplus since 2024.