Lawsuit: Canyon County Jail illegally censoring inmate mail
BOISE – Canyon County officials are violating the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment by censoring mail sent to prisoners in the county’s jail, a human rights group alleges in a lawsuit.
Human Rights Defense Center in the lawsuit filed Tuesday against the county and Sheriff Kieran Donahue said magazines and other materials pertaining to legal rights it sends to incarcerated individuals are prevented from going through.
The group, headquartered in Lake Worth, Florida, said it assists prisoners in all 50 states seeking legal redress for violations of their constitutional and other basic human rights. It does that in part by distributing books, magazines and brochures.
“Defendants have a custom and practice of rejecting magazines and informational brochures sent by HRDC to prisoners at the Jail,” the lawsuit states. “Accordingly, Defendants’ publications and mail policies and practices violate HRDC’s rights under the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.”
Canyon County spokesman Joe Decker declined to comment.
The group said it publishes a 72-page monthly magazine titled Prison Legal News concerning news and analysis about prisons. Another magazine called Criminal Legal News focuses on individual rights and criminal justice-related issues. The group also publishes books about the criminal justice system, legal reference books and self-help books of interest to prisoners.
The group in the lawsuit said Canyon County Jail officials are refusing to deliver issues of Prison Legal News and Criminal Legal News, as well as informational brochure packets. The group said that since November 2020, it can identify at least 21 items of mail it sent to prisoners in the Canyon County Jail that it said were censored.
It said the items were returned with notations on the envelopes that said “Refused,” “Staples Not Allowed,” “Staples + Advertisements Not Allowed,” and “Soliciting Not Allowed.”Canyon County’s website says inmates can receive books and magazines, but there are some restrictions and conditions. Jail officials, for example, don’t allow inmates to have more than five publications at a time.
The lawsuit states the group has suffered damages that include the loss of potential subscribers and the inability to recruit new subscribers.
The group is asking the court prevent jail officials from blocking material it sends to inmates. It is also asking for a jury trial and unspecified damages.