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Alaska Supreme Court Rules Against Muslim Prisoner on Correspondence Ban
by Ed Lyon
Unlike most state prison systems, Alaska’s Department of Corrections (DOC) usually allows prisoners to correspond by mail with prisoners in other units. In February 2014, prison officials adopted a policy that prohibited prisoners assigned to three units from sending letters to each other. The reason …
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More from this issue:
- News in Brief
- NBC Sends Anchorman Lester Holt to Prison as Part of its “Justice for All” Series, by Chad Marks
- The Cost of Prison Censorship: Florida Taxpayers to Pay $1.2 Million in HRDC Case
- $8,500 Settlement in Allegheny County Jail Sexual Harassment Suit, by David M. Reutter
- $860,000 Settlement in Suit Over Michigan Female Prisoner’s Suicide, by David M. Reutter
- Organization Connected to Missouri Prison Director Gets No-Bid Contract, by Scott Grammer
- Federal Prisoner Challenges Constitutionality of Death Penalty; Gets Plea Deal for Life Without Parole, by Matthew Clarke
- Court Orders Changes to Alabama Prison System After 15 Suicides; Feds Threaten Suit, by Scott Grammer
- Department of Justice Report Shows Small Decrease in U.S. Prison Population, by Scott Grammer
- Compassionate Releases Needed for an Aging Prisoner Population, by Edward Lyon
- Florida Supreme Court Issues Death Penalty Rulings, by Edward Lyon
- Washington State Settles Suit Over 15-Hour-a-Day Lockdown of Mentally Ill Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
- South Carolina: Lawsuit Alleges Medical Staff, Guards Negligent in Baby’s Death, by Bill Barton
- Usual Cruelty: The Complicity of Lawyers in the Criminal Injustice System, by Alec Karakatsanis, by Sam Feldman
- Arizona Court Grants Partial Summary Judgment to PLN in Censorship Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Study Finds that War on Drugs Kept Black Men from Higher Education, by Scott Grammer
- Maryland: Parole Changes Needed for Life-Sentenced Prisoners, by Chad Marks
- Man Mistakenly Released 13 Years Ago Won’t Have to Return to Prison, by Douglas Ankney
- Allegheny County Settles Three Lawsuits Over Medical Care at County Jail, by Dale Chappell
- West Virginia Regional Jails Entitled to Sovereign Immunity, by David M. Reutter
- Seventh Circuit: Failure to Provide Medical Accommodation is Deliberate Indifference, by Kevin Bliss
- Three Deaths in Three Days at Illinois Prison Spur Calls for Greater Transparency, by Chad Marks
- Missouri Sheriff Tells Judge that County Won’t Pay for Prisoners’ Food, Medical Care, by Bill Barton
- No Fourth Amendment Violation for Abusive Group Strip Search of Female Prisoners, by Edward Lyon
- Pattern of Abuse and Mismanagement at North Carolina Jail, by David M. Reutter
- $3.1 Million Settlement for Washington Jail Detainee’s Death, by Douglas Ankney
- Seventh Circuit: Non-Medical Prison Staff Entitled to Qualified Immunity, by Douglas Ankney
- New Jersey: Appellate Court Shoots Down $7.5 Million Verdict in Prison Whistleblower Case, by Chad Marks
- Nevada Supreme Court Reverses Dismissal of Prisoner’s Native American Religion Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Why Not Let Prisoners Vote While Incarcerated?, by Bill Barton
- Ex-Offenders Work for Organization that Repairs and Sells Vehicles at Low Cost, by Douglas Ankney
- Court Declines to Seal Records in Michigan Prisoner’s Excessive Force Case, by David M. Reutter
- New York: Prisoners Have No Expectation to Privacy During Jail Phone Calls, by Chad Marks
- Missouri Jury Awards $113.7 Million to Prison Guards Required to Work Without Pay, by Matthew Clarke
- Muslim Civil Rights Group Files Discrimination Suit Over Virginia Jail’s “God Pod”, by Matthew Clarke
- Whistleblower Lawsuit Exposes Violence, Cover-ups at Rikers Island Jail, by Dale Chappell
- Prison’s Refusal to Allow Wiccan Services Must be Reviewed for Compelling Governmental Interest, by Kevin Bliss
- Conditions Lawsuit Against Indiana County Jail Certified as a Class Action, by Kevin Bliss
- Fifth Circuit Terminates Consent Decree for Muslim Services in Texas Prisons, by Matthew Clarke
- Oregon Prisoner’s Use of Another Prisoner’s Phone PIN Constitutes Identity Theft, by Mark Wilson
- Sex Offenders Excluded from Florida Shelters During Hurricane, by David M. Reutter
- Pennsylvania’s Buck County Liable for Illegally Disclosing Criminal Records, by David M. Reutter
- Alaska Supreme Court Rules Against Muslim Prisoner on Correspondence Ban, by Edward Lyon
- Judge Orders Federal Prisoner with Cancer Released Due to Poor Medical Care, by Matthew Clarke
- Eleventh Circuit: Tasing of Inert Detainee is Excessive Force, by David M. Reutter
- Appellate Court Holds Louisiana Prisoner’s Medical Malpractice Claim May Proceed, by David M. Reutter
- How High-Priced Drugs Cripple Prison Health Care – and Reform, by Priti Krishtel
- HRDC Lawsuit Proceeds Over Care Provided to Florida Prisoner Who Starved to Death, by David M. Reutter
- Victim Notification Law Plagues Alabama’s Parole System, by Kevin Bliss
- Louisiana Enters into Subscription Model Contract for HCV Treatment, by David M. Reutter
- Washington DOC Medical Director Fired for Negligence, by Dale Chappell
- Louisiana Prison Industry Program Puts Profits Before Prisoners, by Kevin Bliss
- Virginia Death Row Conditions Subjected Prisoners to Risk of Harm, by David M. Reutter
- U.S. Department of Justice Plans to Ramp up Federal Death Penalty, by Chad Marks
- Behind Bars, Co-Pays Are a Barrier to Basic Health Care, by Victoria Law
- Oregon Transgender Prisoner Must be Housed Alone or with Other Transgender or NonCisgender Prisoners, by Mark Wilson
- Alabama Prisoners Bring Awareness of Abusive Conditions Through Hunger Strikes, by Kevin Bliss
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Beyond Estelle: Medical Rights for Incarcerated Patients, by Greg Dober
More from Edward Lyon:
- “There you go, Agent Orange!” Former South Carolina Sheriff Federally Indicted for Assaulting Jail Detainee, May 1, 2024
- Texas Prisons are Fire Traps, July 15, 2023
- The World’s Biggest Prison, July 15, 2023
- U.S. Prisoner Numbers Slowly Declining, June 15, 2023
- Civilian Police With Military Equipment, June 15, 2023
- California Easing Housing Hurdles for Released Prisoners, June 1, 2023
- Warden Ousted from Troubled Alabama Prison After DUI Arrest, May 1, 2023
- $20,000 Settlement for Ohio Prisoner’s Slip-and-Fall Injury, May 1, 2023
- $32,500 Medical Malpractice Award to Ohio Prisoner for Ripped-Out Catheter, May 1, 2023
- New York State’s Veterans Treatment Courts, April 15, 2023
More from these topics:
- Illinois Jail Reprimanded for Denying Detainees Mail Based on Media Content, P.O. Box Return Address, Settles Detainees’ Suit with $111,825 Payment of Legal Fees, May 1, 2026. Publications/Books, Mail Regulations, Censorship, First Amendment, rights, Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).
- $667,000 Awarded to Muslim Missouri Prisoners Pepper-Sprayed for Praying, April 1, 2026. Religious Discrimination, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Religious Practices, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Deliberate Indifference.
- Like Prisoners, Most Jail Detainees Now Banned from Receiving Physical Mail, March 1, 2026. Jail Specific, Mail Regulations, Legal Mail, Censorship, Digital Devices, Private Phone Contractors.
- Mail Went Digital in Alabama Prisons. Families Are Saying Their Mail Isn’t Being Delivered, March 1, 2026. Mail Regulations, Legal Mail, First Amendment, rights, Access To Courts, Access to Computers.
- Incarcerated Women Featured in True Crime Media Face Flood of Sexual Harassment, March 1, 2026. Sexual Harassment, Prison Labor, Hygiene Supplies, Mail, TV/Movies.
- Number of Narcan Doses Raises Drug Concerns at New Jersey Prisons, March 1, 2026. Drug Overdose, Mail Regulations, Drug Treatment/Rehab, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Most U.S. Prisoners Now Barred from Directly Receiving Physical Mail, Feb. 1, 2026. Mail Regulations, Due Process, Legal Mail, Censorship, Warrantless Searches, Electronic Surveillance.
- United States Postal Service Declares Postmarks Could Be Delayed, Feb. 1, 2026. Mail Regulations, Due Process, Legal Mail, Access To Courts.
- $4,652 for Jewish Nevada Prisoner Denied Passover Meal, Jan. 1, 2026. Religious Discrimination, Food, Settlements, First Amendment, rights, Dismissal.
- Eighth Circuit Orders Preliminary Injunction Requiring Minnesota to Reinstate Program Teaching Biblical “Authentic Manhood”, Nov. 1, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Injunctions, Interlocutory Appeals, Protected Speech, Religious Freedom/Worship, Prison Regulations.

