What is contraband in a correctional facility?

• A. Any unauthorized article foreign to a facility or any authorized article in excessive quantities or altered from its intended purpose.
• B. Only illegal drugs are contraband.
• C. Only weapons are contraband.
• D. Items allowed by the facility are always contraband.

Answer: (A)

Contraband is any item that should not be inside the facility or is being used in a way that isn’t allowed. The proper definition covers both articles that are unauthorized and authorized items that are used in excessive quantities or altered from their intended purpose. This means that not only illegal items like drugs or weapons can be contraband, but also legitimate items when they’re overabundant or modified to bypass rules. The key idea is that possession and use are judged against the facility’s rules, not the item’s outside legality. Items that are allowed by the facility aren’t contraband, while anything prohibited or misused falls into contraband territory.