Had it not been for police monitoring of a single jailhouse phone call, white supremacists in southeastern Virginia would almost certainly have killed any number of innocent people in a series of domestic terror attacks.

Instead, an alert sheriff’s deputy listening to an inmate’s call set in motion a law enforcement response that led to the arrest and prosecution of the terrorists.

It wasn’t the first time. Were it not for jails monitoring inmate communications, calling privileges would be an open invitation for criminal enterprises to operate from inside the jail. Communities would be put at risk and witnesses would be intimidated, or worse.

Sheriff Gabe Morgan, of the Newport News Sheriff’s Office, is the current chair of our Jails, Detention, and Corrections Committee.