Even Without Internet Access, Prisoners Are Trying to Benefit From A.I.

Jason Allen is pretty sure ChatGPT can come up with a better legal strategy than he can.

Mr. Allen, 42, who is serving a life sentence for murder at a maximum-security prison near Baltimore, has considered filing a lawsuit over the frequency of inmate cancer screenings there. He’s heard enough about ChatGPT to seek its help — but inmates aren’t allowed to freely browse the internet, much less fiddle with artificial intelligence.

So Mr. Allen called a friend outside the prison, Jessup Correctional Institution, who asked ChatGPT to outline potential legal arguments. The friend sent screenshots of the chatbot’s answers through the prison’s messaging system. Mr. Allen received them about a week and a half later, after approval by the correctional staff.

“A.I. is a tool that could assist people with finding justice. It could put pressure on them to do the right thing,” Mr. Allen said in a phone interview. “I’m still in the Stone Ages.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/21/business/ai-chatbots-prisoners.html