Prisoners to Get Fruit, Cash for Christmas

It doesn’t matter if you’re naughty or nice, if you’re a prisoner in Arkansas, you will receive a gift this Christmas.

Prison officials will give each of the 13,500 inmates in the state two apples, two oranges as well as $5 on Christmas Eve and Christmas in a bid to make life a bit brighter for those behind bars over the holidays.

The $70,000 cost for the program is paid for by prison vending machine profit and from rebates the system receives on long-distance calls placed by inmates.

The fresh fruit is donated from various orchards across the U.S.

For security reasons, the prison system forbids inmates’ friends and relatives from sending gifts to prisoners at any time of year -- except for gift packages purchased through prison commissaries.