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Articles by Paul Wright

Allan Ellis' Federal Prison Guidebook

Allan Ellis' Federal Prison Guidebook is a 312 page book that gives a detailed rundown of federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) facilities. Alan Ellis is a California attorney who specializes in the pre-sentence and post conviction representation of federal prisoners. He is nationally recognized as an expert in this area …

Criminal Law

Criminal Law is an 809 page book designed for criminal justice personnel, judges, prosecutors, police, etc. The book is extremely useful for anyone seeking a basic understanding of substantive criminal law. It does not deal with criminal procedure. With extensive state and federal case citations the book is not intended …

Connecticut Prisoner Rights

Connecticut Prisoner Rights is a brand new 232 page book produced by the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union and the Jerome Frank Legal Services Organization of Yale Law School. A group effort by Peter Stern and numerous other law students and attorneys, the end result is a concise, well organized book …

Briefs of Leading Cases in Corrections

Briefs of Leading Cases in Corrections is a 268 page book by Rolando Del Carmen, Susan Ritter and Betsy Witt, which gives a summary and synopsis of 113 United States supreme court cases dealing with prisons, jails, probation, parole, the death penalty, sentencing and juvenile justice. The book is well …

Cigarette Health Hazards

Cigarette Health Hazards: The January 14, 1998, Volume 279, No. 2, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) contains an article on the risks of cigarette smoke in increasing the risk of heart disease. Title "Cigarette Smoking and Progression of Athero Sclerosis," by eight doctors, the article …

An End to Silence

An End to Silence: Women Prisoners' Handbook on Identifying and Addressing Sexual Misconduct is a 67 page booklet published by the National Women's Law Center. The booklet is designed for women prisoners, their advocates, prison officials and attorneys. It contains chapters on recognizing misconduct; the physical and emotional effects of …

The Razor Wire

The Razor Wire is a 24 page bi-monthly tabloid published by the November Coalition. Its focus is on federal drug policy issues, specifically mandatory minimums and sentencing issues. A grassroots movement, the November Coalition encompasses prisoners, their families, as well as academics and other critics of the drug war. Subscriptions …

WA Prison Telemarketing Elicits Controversy - Again

In December 1997 and January 1998, statewide media attention spotlighted a "shocking" prison tele- marketing partnership between the Washington state Parks and Recreation Department and the Department of Corrections (DOC) Correctional Industries (CI). For two years prisoners at Clallam Bay Corrections Center (CBCC) manned the Parks Department's toll-free information hotline. …

U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Heightened Pleading Standards for Intent Based Claims

By Paul Wright

On May 4, 1998, the United States supreme court held that civil rights plaintiffs do not have to meet a heightened standard of pleading when filing suit against government officials. Lawsuits alleging an improper motive on the part of government defendants, i.e., retaliation claims, do not require …

From the Editor

We would like to thank Youth Emergency Services in Texas for awarding PLN a $1,000 grant with which to do sample mailings. We would also like to thank an East coast prisoner, who prefers to stay anonymous, for his donation of $500 so we can run 28 page issues of …