Prosecutors recently pressed charges against one of convicted killer Charles Manson's followers after the man allegedly attempted to smuggle a cell phone into prison to give to Manson. According to the Los Angeles Times, 63-year-old Craig Carlisle Hammond was charged with possession of an illegal communication device. Hammond goes by the name Gray Wolf, which was given to him by Manson during one of his many visits to the former cult leader.

Terry Thornton, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections, told ABC News, inmates are only allowed to use pay phones located in the facilities.

"Inmates can make collect calls on the phones provided in our institutions," Thornton said. "Those phones are monitored. That's one of the dangers of the contraband cellphones."

Hammond, a self-proclaimed follower of Manson's Air, Trees, Water, Animals cult, is one of Manson's regular visitors. After he was detained at the Level 4 visitation entrance of the Corcoran State Prison, police decided to also search Manson and two other visitors who also consented to their vehicles being searched. Hammond was taken to King County Jail, where he was later released on a $30,000 Los Angeles County bail bond.

This wouldn't have been the first time Manson would have access to a cell phone while in prison. According to the source, he made phone calls to California, New Jersey and Florida in 2009 before authorities found an LG flip phone stashed under his prison bunk bed, the LA Times reported. Police decided to add an additional 30 days to his life sentence. After he was caught again with a cellphone on January 6, 2011, California Gov. Jerry Brown decided to sign a state Senate bill that makes it a misdemeanor to possess an unauthorized cell phone in prison or to try to bring one into prison.

Why cell phones are an issue in California jails and prisons
Authorities have been attempting to crack down on the use of individuals using cell phones in jail because it can cause a lot of problems. According to the LA Times, many inmates are able to run gangs behind bars by using cell phones.  Other inmates have used phones to intimidate witnesses or have planned attacks on guards in the past. In 2011, there were about 15,000 cell phones found within prisons across the country.