States want prison cellphone jam; wise idea?

Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison is co-author of a bill to allow states to jam cellphones inside prisons; since they are actually two-way radios, cellphones are wholly under the regulation of the Federal Communications Commission and jamming them is illegal.

On the surface, it sounds like a bright idea.

But the wireless industry trade group CTIA-The Wireless Association, says that experiences in other countries show that private lines in the vicinity also get jammed. It wants states to use better detection technology and toughen criminal penalties.