Chapter 1: Introduction

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

A. WHAT IS THIS HANDBOOK
B. HOW TO USE THIS HANDBOOK
C. WHO CAN USE THIS HANDBOOK
1. Prisoners in Every State Can Use this Handbook
2. Prisoners in Federal Prison can use this Handbook
3. Prisoners in City or County Jails Can Use this Handbook
4. Prisoners in Private Prisons Can Use this Handbook
D. WHY TO TRY AND GET A LAWYER
E. A SHORT HISTORY OF SECTION 1983 AND THE STRUGGLES FOR PRISONERS RIGHTS
F. THE USES AND LIMITS OF LEGAL ACTIONS

CHAPTER TWO: YOUR LEGAL OPTIONS

A. SECTION 1983 LAWSUITS
1. Violations of Your Federal Rights
2. “Under Color of State Law”
B. STATE COURT CASES
C. FEDERAL TORTS CLAIMS ACT (FTCA)
1. Who You Can Sue
2. Types of Torts
a. NEGLIGENCE
b. INTENTIONAL TORTS
c. FALSE IMPRISONMENT
d. INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS
3. Administrative Exhaustion
4. Damages in FTCA Suits
5. The Discretionary Function Exception
D. BIVENS ACTIONS AND FEDERAL INJUNCTIONS
1. Who is Acting Under Color of Federal Law?
2. Unconstitutional Acts by Federal Officials
3. Federal Injunctions
E. PROTECTION OF PRISONERS UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW
F. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE PRISON LITIGATION REFORM ACT (PLRA)
1. Injunctive Relief
2. Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies
3. Mental Emotional Injury
4. Attorneys’ Fees
5. Screening, Dismissal and Waiver of Reply
6. Filing Fees and the Three Strikes Provision

CHAPTER THREE: YOUR RIGHTS IN PRISON

A. YOUR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND ASSOCIATION, AND THE TURNER TEST
1. Access to Reading Materials
2. Free Expressions of Political Beliefs
3. Limits on Censorship of Mail
a. OUTGOING MAIL
b. INCOMING MAIL
c. LEGAL MAIL
4. Access to the Telephone
5. Your Right to Receive Visits from Family and Friends and to Maintain Relationships in Prison
a. ACCESS TO VISITS
b. VISITATION FOR LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER PRISONERS
c. RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER PRISONERS
d. CARING FOR YOUR CHILD IN PRISON
B. YOUR RIGHT TO PRACTICE YOUR RELIGION
1. Free Exercise Clause
2. Establishment Clause
3. Fourteenth Amendment Protection of Religion
4. Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA)
5. Cases and Issues
C. YOUR RIGHT TO BE FREE FROM DISCRIMINATION
1. Freedom from Racial Discrimination
2. Freedom from Gender Discrimination
a. THE “SIMILARLY SITUATED” ARGUMENT
b. THE EQUAL PROTECTION TEST FOR GENDER DISCRIMINATION
3. Freedom from Other Forms of Discrimination
D. YOUR PROCEDURAL DUE PROCESS RIGHTS REGARDING PUNISHMENT
1. Two Important Supreme Court Cases Govern Due Process Rights for Prisoners
2. Transfers and Segregation
E. YOUR RIGHT TO BE FREE FROM UNREASONABLE SEARCHES AND SEIZURES
F. YOUR RIGHT TO BE FREE FROM CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT
1. Protection from Physical Brutality
2. Rape, Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment
a. OUTRAGEOUS CONDUCT VS. UNCONSTITUTIONAL CONDUCT
b. PSYCHOLOGICAL HARM
c. CONSENSUAL SEX BETWEEN PRISONERS AND GUARDS
d. CHALLENGING PRISON SUPERVISORS AND PRISON POLICIES
3. Your Right to Decent Conditions in Prison
4. Your Right to Medical Care
a. SERIOUS MEDICAL NEED
b. DELIBERATE INDIFFERENCE
c. CAUSATION
G. YOUR RIGHT TO USE THE COURTS
1. The Right to File Papers and Meet with Lawyers and Legal Workers
2. Access to a Law Library
3. Getting Help from a Jailhouse Lawyer and Providing Help to Other Prisoners
4. Dealing with Retaliation
H. ISSUES OF IMPORTANCE TO WOMEN PRISONERS
1. Medical Care
a. PROPER CARE FOR WOMEN PRISONERS
b. MEDICAL NEEDS OF PREGNANT WOMEN
2. Your Right to an Abortion in Prison
a. FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT CLAIM
b. EIGHT AMENDMENT CLAIM
3. Observations and Searches by Male Guards
I. ISSUES OF IMPORTANCE TO TRANSGENDER PRISONERS
1. Classification
a. PLACEMENT IN MALE OR FEMALE FACILITIES
b. INVOLUNTARY SEGREGATION
c. ACCESS TO PROTECTIVE CUSTODY
2. Health
a. ACCESS TO GENDER-AFFIRMING HEALTH CARE
b. CONFIDENTIALITY
3. Free Gender Expression
a. CLOTHING AND GROOMING
b. NAME AND ID GENDER CHANGES
c. ACCESS TO READING MATERIAL
d. JOB/PROGRAM DISCRIMINATION
4. Dealing with Violence and Abuse
a. VERBAL HARASSMENT
b. DRAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT
c. STRIP SEARCHES
J. ISSUES OF IMPORTANCE TO PRETRIAL DETAINEES
K. ISSUES OF IMPORTANCE TO NON-CITIZENS AND IMMIGRATION DETAINEES

CHAPTER FOUR: STRUCTURING YOUR LAWSUIT

A. WHAT TO ASK FOR IN YOUR LAWSUIT
B. INJUNCTIONS
1. Preliminary Injunctions and Permanent Injunctions
2. Exhaustion and Injunctions
3. Temporary Restraining Orders
C. MONEY DAMAGES
1. The Three Types of Money Damages
2. Damages Under the PLRA
3. Deciding How Much Money to Ask For
D. WHO YOU CAN SUE
1. Who to Sue for an Injunction
2. Who to Sue for Money Damages: the Problem of “Qualified Immunity”
3. What Happens to Your Money Damages
E. SETTLEMENTS
F. CLASS ACTIONS

CHAPTER FIVE: HOW TO START YOUR LAWSUIT

A. WHEN TO FILE YOUR LAWSUIT
1. Statute of Limitations
2. Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies
B. WHERE TO FILE YOUR LAWSUIT
C. HOW TO START YOUR LAWSUIT
1. Summons and Complaint
a. COMPLAINT
b. SUMMONS
2. In Forma Pauperis Papers
3. Request for Appointment of Counsel
4. Declarations
D. HOW TO SERVE YOUR LEGAL PAPERS
E. GETTING IMMEDIATE HELP FROM THE COURT
F. SIGNING YOUR PAPERS

CHAPTER SIX: WHAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU FILE SUIT

A. SHORT SUMMARY OF A LAWSUIT
B. DISMISSAL BY THE COURT AND WAIVER OF REPLY
C. HOW TO RESPOND TO A MOTION TO DISMISS YOUR COMPLAINT
D. THE PROBLEM OF MOOTNESS
E. DISCOVERY
1. Discovery Tools
2. What You Can See and Ask About
3. Privilege
4. Some Basic Steps
5. Some Practical Considerations
6. Procedure
7. Their Discovery of Your Information and Material
F. SUMMARY JUDGMENT
1. The Legal Standard
2. Summary Judgment Procedure
3. Summary Judgment in Your Favor
G. WHAT TO DO IF YOUR COMPLAINT IS DISMISSED OR THE COURT GRANTS DEFENDANTS SUMMARY JUDGMENT
1. Motion to Alter or Amend the Judgment
2. How to Appeal the Decision of the District Court

CHAPTER SEVEN: THE LEGAL SYSTEM AND LEGAL RESEARCH

A. THE IMPORTANCE OF PRECEDENT
1. The Federal Court System
2. How Judges Interpret Laws on the Basis of Precedent
3. Statutes
4. Other Grounds for Court Decisions
B. LEGAL CITATIONS – HOW TO FIND COURT DECISIONS AND OTHER LEGAL MATERIAL
1. Court Decisions
2. Legislation and Court Rules
3. Books and Articles
4. Research Aids
C. LEGAL WRITING

APPENDICES

Appendix A: Glossary of Terms
Appendix B: Sample Complaint
Appendix C: FTCA Form
Appendix D: More Legal Forms and Information
Appendix E: Constitutional Amendments
Appendix F: Excerpts from the PLRA
Appendix G: Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Appendix H: Sources of Legal Support
Appendix I: Sources of Publicity
Appendix J: Prisoners’ Rights Books and Newsletters
Appendix K: Free Book Programs
Appendix L: District Court Addresses

This Handbook explains how a prisoner can start a lawsuit in federal court, to fight against mistreatment and bad conditions in prison. Because most prisoners are in state prisons, we focus on those. However, people in federal prisons and city or county jails will be able to use the Handbook too.

We, the authors of the Handbook, do not assume that a lawsuit is the only way to challenge abuse in prison or that it is always the best way. We believe that a lawsuit can sometimes be one useful weapon in the struggle to change prisons and the society that makes prisons the way they are.

The Handbook discusses only some of the legal problems which prisoners face – conditions inside prison and the way you are treated by prison staff. The Handbook does not deal with how you got to prison or how you can get out of prison. It does not explain how to conduct a legal defense against criminal charges or a defense against disciplinary measures for something you supposedly did in prison.

The Importance of “Section 1983”

A prisoner can file several different kinds of cases about conditions and treatment in prison. This Handbook is mostly about only one kind of legal action: a lawsuit in federal court based on federal law. For prisoners in State prison, this type of lawsuit is known as a “Section 1983” suit. It takes its name from Section 1983 of Title 42 of the United States Code. The U.S. Congress passed Section 1983 to allow people to sue in federal court when a state or local official violates their federal rights. If you are in state prison, you can bring a Section 1983 suit to challenge certain types of poor treatment. Chapter Three of this Handbook explains in detail which kinds of problems you can sue for using Section 1983.

The Handbook is organized into six chapters, plus several appendices.

CHAPTERS

This is Chapter One, which gives you an introduction to the Handbook. Sections C through E of this chapter indicate the limits of this Handbook and explain how to try to get a lawyer. Sections F and G give a short history of Section 1983 and discuss its use and limits in political struggles in and outside prison.

Chapter Two discusses the different types of lawsuits available to prisoners and summarizes an important federal law that limits prisoners’ access to the courts, called the “Prison Litigation Reform Act.”

Chapter Three summarizes many of your Constitutional rights in prison.

Chapter Four explains how to structure your lawsuit, including what kind of relief you can sue for, and who to sue.

Chapter Five gives the basic instructions for starting a federal lawsuit and getting immediate help from the court – what legal papers to file, when, where and how. It also provides templates and examples of important legal documents.

Chapter Six discusses the first things that will happen after you start your suit. It helps you respond to a “motion to dismiss” your suit or a “motion for summary judgment” against you. It also tells you what to do if prison officials win these motions. It explains how to use “pre-trial discovery” to get information and materials from prison officials.

Chapter Seven gives some basic information about the U.S. legal system. It also explains how to find laws and court decisions in a law library and how to refer to them in legal papers.

The APPENDICES are additional parts of the Handbook that provide extra information. The appendices to the Handbook provide materials for you to use when you prepare your suit and after you file it.

• Appendix A contains a glossary of legal terms.
• Appendix B a sample complaint in a prison case.
• Appendices C and D contain forms for basic legal papers. You will also find helpful forms and sample papers within Chapters Four and Five.
• Appendix E gives the text of the first Fifteen Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
• Appendix F has a few of the important sections of the Prison Litigation Reform Act, and
• Appendix G includes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
• Appendices H and I list possible sources of support and publicity – legal groups, political and civic groups that help prisoners, progressive magazines and newspapers that cover prison issues, and other outlets you can write to.
• Appendix J lists other legal materials you can read to keep up to date and learn details which are not included in this manual.
• Appendix K lists free book programs for prisoners, and
• Appendix L includes a list of addresses of Federal District Courts for your reference.

Most of the prisoners in the Country are in State prison, but prisoners in other sorts of prisons or detention centers can use this book too.

1. Prisoners in City or County Jail can use this Handbook.
Section 1983 provides a way for State Prisoners to assert their rights under the United States Constitution. Every State Prisoner in the country, no matter what state he or she is in, has the same rights. However, different courts interpret these rights differently. For example, a federal court in New York may come to one conclusion about an issue, while a federal court in Tennessee may reach a totally different conclusion about the same issue.

States also have their own laws, and their own constitutions. State courts, rather than federal courts, have the last word on what the state constitution means. This means that in some cases, you might have more success in state court than in federal court. You can read more about this possibility in the next chapter.

Unfortunately, we don’t have the time or the space to tell you about the differences in the law from state to state. So while using this Handbook, you should also try to check state law using the resources listed in Appendix J. You can also check the books available in your prison and contact the nearest office of the National Lawyers Guild or any other lawyers, law students or political groups you know of that support prisoners’ struggles.

2. Prisoners in Federal Prison can use this Handbook.
If you are in federal prison, this Handbook will also be helpful. Federal prisoners have basically the same federal rights as state prisoners. Where things are different for people in federal prison, we have tried to make a note of it for you.

The major difference is that federal prisoners cannot use Section 1983 to sue about bad conditions and mistreatment in federal prison. Instead, you have a couple options. You can use a case called Bivens v. Six Named Agents of Federal Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971). In Bivens, the Supreme Court said that you can sue in federal court whenever a federal official violates your rights under the U.S. Constitution. This is called a “Bivens action.”

Federal prisoners can also use a federal law called the “Federal Tort Claims Act” (FTCA) to sue the United States directly for your mistreatment. Both Bivens and FTCA suits are explained in more detail in Chapter Two. The bottom line is that federal and state prisoners have mostly the same rights, but they will need to use slightly different procedures when filing a case.

3. Prisoners in Private Prisons can use this Handbook.
People serving sentences in jail have the same rights under Section 1983 and the U.S. Constitution as people in prison. Usually, these are city jails but can be any kind of jail run by a municipality. A “municipality” is a city, town, county or other kind of local government.

People in jail waiting for trial are called “pretrial detainees,” and sometimes have more protection under the Constitution than convicted prisoners. Chapter Three, Section J discusses some of the ways in which pretrial detainees are treated differently than convicted prisoners. However, you can still use most of the cases and procedures in this Handbook to bring your Section 1983 claim. Where things are different for people in jails, we have tried to make note of it for you.

4. Prisoners in Private Prisons Can Use This Handbook
As you know, most prisons are run by the state or the federal government, which means that the guards who work there are state or federal employees. A private prison, on the other hand, is operated by a for-profit corporation, which employs private individuals as guards.

If you are one of the hundreds of thousands of prisoners currently incarcerated in a private prison, most of the information in this Handbook also applies to you. The ability of state prisoners in private prisons to sue under Section 1983 is discussed in Chapter Two, Section A. In some cases it is actually easier to sue private prison guards, because they cannot claim “qualified immunity.” You will learn about “qualified immunity” in Chapter 4, Section D.

Federal prisoners serving sentences in private prisons can use the Bivens action described in Chapter Two, Section D, with some limitations. In Correctional Services Corporation v. Malesko, 534 U.S. 61 (2001), a federal prisoner who had a heart attack at a halfway house sued after a private guard made him climb up five flights of stairs. The Supreme Court held that he could not sue the halfway house itself using the Bivens doctrine. However, someone in this situation may be able to sue the private prison employees directly. Another choice for a prisoner in this situation is to file a claim in state court.

Unfortunately, not that many lawyers represent prisoners, so you may have trouble finding one. You have a right to sue without a lawyer. This is called suing “pro se,” which means “for himself or herself.” Filing a lawsuit pro se is very difficult. Thousands of lawsuits are filed by prisoners every year, and most of these suits are lost before they even go to trial. We do not want to discourage you from turning to the court system, but encourage you to do everything you can to try to get a lawyer to help you, before you decide to file pro se.

A lawyer is also very helpful after your suit has been filed. He or she can interview witnesses and discuss the case with the judge in court, while you are confined in prison. A lawyer also has access to a better library and more familiarity with legal forms and procedures. And despite all the legal research and time you spend on your case, many judges are more likely to take a lawyer seriously than someone filing pro se.

If you feel, after reading Chapter Three, that you have a basis for a lawsuit, try to find a good lawyer to represent you. You can look in the phone book to find a lawyer, or to get the address for the “bar association” in your state. A bar association is a group that many lawyers belong to. You can ask the bar association to give you the names of some lawyers who take prison cases.

You probably will not be able to pay the several thousand dollars or more which you would need to hire a lawyer. But there are other ways you might be able to get a lawyer to take your case.

• If you have a good chance of winning a substantial amount of money (explained in Chapter Four, Section C), a lawyer might take your case on a “contingency fee” basis. This means you agree to pay the lawyer a portion of your money damages if you win (usually one-third), but the lawyer gets nothing if you lose. This kind of arrangement is used in many suits involving car accidents and other personal injury cases outside of prison. In prison, it may be appropriate if you have been severely injured by guard brutality or an unsafe prison condition.
• If you don’t expect to win money from your suit, a lawyer who represents you in some types of cases can get paid by the government if you win your case. These fees are authorized by the United States Code, Title 42, Section 1988. However, the recent Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1996 (called the “PLRA” and discussed in Chapter Two, Section F) added new rules that restrict the court’s ability to award fees to your lawyer. These new provisions may make it harder to find a lawyer who is willing to represent you.
• If you can’t find a lawyer to represent you from the start, you can file the suit yourself and ask the court to “appoint” or get a lawyer for you. Unlike in a criminal case, you have no absolute right to a free attorney in a civil case about prison abuse. This means that a judge is not required by law to appoint counsel for you in a Section 1983 case, but he or she can appoint counsel if he or she chooses. You will learn how to ask the judge to get you a lawyer in Chapter Five, Section C, Part 3 of this Handbook.
• A judge can appoint a lawyer as soon as you file your suit. But it is much more likely that he or she will only appoint a lawyer for you if you successfully get your case moving forward, and convince the judge that you have a chance of winning. This means that the judge may wait until after he or she rules on the prison officials’ motions to dismiss your complaint or motion for summary judgment. Chapters Five and Six of this Handbook will help you prepare your basic legal papers and respond to a motion to dismiss or motion for summary judgment.

Even if you have a lawyer from the start, this Handbook is still useful to help you understand what he or she is doing.

Be sure your lawyer explains the choices you have at each stage of the case. Remember that he or she is working for you. This means that he or she should answer your letters and return your phone calls within a reasonable amount of time. Don’t be afraid to ask your lawyer questions. If you don’t understand what is happening in your case, ask your lawyer to explain it to you. Don’t ever let your lawyer force decisions on you or do things you don’t want.

As you read in Sections A and C, most prisoners who decide to challenge abuse or mistreatment in prison will do so through a federal law known as “Section 1983.” Section 1983 is a way for any individual (not just a prisoner) to challenge something done by a state employee. The part of the law you need to understand reads as follows:

Every person who, under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State or Territory or the District of Columbia, subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States or other person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured in an action at law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress …

Section A of Chapter Two will explain what this means in detail, but we will give you some background information here, because the history of prisoners’ struggles in the courts starts with the history of Section 1983. Section 1983 is a law that was passed by the United States Congress over 100 years ago, but it had very little effect until the 1960s. Section 1983 was originally known as Section 1 of the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871. Section 1983 does not mention race, and it is available for use by people of any color, but it was originally passed specifically to help African-Americans enforce the new constitutional rights they won after the Civil War — specifically, the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Those amendments made slavery illegal, established the right to “due process of law” and equal protection of the laws, and guaranteed every male citizen the right to vote. Although these Amendments became law, white racist judges in the state courts refused to enforce these laws, especially when people had their rights violated by other state or local government officials. The U.S. Congress passed Section 1983 to allow people to sue in federal court when a state or local official violated their federal rights.

Soon after Section 1983 became law, however, Northern big businessmen joined forces with Southern plantation owners to take back the limited freedom that African-Americans had won. Federal judges found excuses to undermine Section 1983 along with most of the other civil rights bills passed by Congress. Although the purpose of Section 1983 was to bypass the racist state courts, federal judges ruled that most lawsuits had to go back to those same state courts. Their rulings remained law until African-Americans began to regain their political strength through the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

In the 1960s, a series of very good Supreme Court cases reversed this trend and transformed Section 1983 into an extremely valuable tool for state prisoners. Prisoners soon began to file more and more federal suits challenging prison abuses. A few favorable decisions were won, dealing mainly with freedom of religion, guard brutality, and a prisoner’s right to take legal action without interference from prison staff. But many judges still continued to believe that the courts should let prison officials make the rules, no matter what those officials did. This way of thinking is called the “hands-off doctrine” because judges keep their “hands off” prison administration.

The next big breakthrough for prisoners did not come until the early 1970s. African-Americans only began to win legal rights when they organized together politically, and labor unions only achieved legal recognition after they won important strikes. In the same way, prisoners did not begin to win many important court decisions until the prison movement grew strong.

Powerful, racially united strikes and rebellions shook Folsom Prison, San Quentin, Attica and other prisons throughout the country during the early 1970s. These rebellions brought the terrible conditions of prisons into the public eye and had some positive effects on the way federal courts dealt with prisoners. Prisoners won important federal court rulings on living conditions, access to the media, and procedures and methods of discipline.

Unfortunately, the federal courts did not stay receptive to prisoners’ struggles for long. In 1996, Congress passed and President Clinton signed into law the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA). The PLRA is very anti-prisoner, and works to limit prisoners’ access to the federal courts. Why would Congress pass such a bad law? Many people say Congress believed a story that was told to them by states tired of spending money to defend themselves against prisoner lawsuits. In this story, prisoners file mountains of unimportant lawsuits because they have time on their hands, and enjoy harassing the government. The obvious truth – that prisoners file a lot of lawsuits because they are subjected to a lot of unjust treatment – was ignored.

The PLRA makes filing a complaint much more costly, time-consuming, and risky to prisoners. Many prisoners’ rights organizations have tried to get parts of the PLRA struck down as unconstitutional, but so far this effort has been unsuccessful. You will find specific information about the individual parts of the PLRA in later chapters of this Handbook. Some of the most important sections of the PLRA are included in Appendix F at the end of this book.

History has taught us that convincing the courts to issue new rulings to improve day-to-day life in prisons, and changing oppressive laws like the PLRA, requires not only litigation, but also the creation and maintenance of a prisoners’ rights movement both inside and outside of the prison walls.

Only a strong prison movement can win and enforce significant legal victories. But the prison movement can also use court action to help build its political strength. A well-publicized lawsuit can educate people outside about the conditions in prison. The struggle to enforce a court order can play an important part in political organizing inside and outside prison. Good court rulings backed up by a strong movement can convince prison staff to hold back, so that conditions inside are a little less brutal and prisoners have a little more freedom to read, write, and talk.

Still, the value of any lawsuit is limited. It may take several years from starting the suit to win a final decision that you can enforce. There may be complex trial procedures, appeals, and delays in complying with a court order. Prison officials may be allowed to follow only the technical words of a court decision, while continuing their illegal behavior another way. Judges may ignore law which obviously is in your favor, because they are afraid of appearing “soft on criminals” or because they think prisoners threaten their own position in society. Even the most liberal, well-meaning judges will only try to change the way prison officials exercise their power. No judge will seriously address the staff’s basic control over your life while in prison.

To make fundamental change in prison, you can’t rely on lawsuits alone. It is important to connect your suit to the larger struggle. Write press releases that explain your suit and what it shows about prison and about the reality of America. Send the releases to newspapers, radio and TV stations, and legislators. Keep in touch throughout the suit with outside groups that support prisoners’ struggles. Look at Appendix I for media and groups that may be able to help you. We have also provided some pointers on writing to these groups.

You may also want to discuss your suit with other prisoners and involve them in it even if they can’t participate officially. Remember that a lawsuit is most valuable as one weapon in the ongoing struggle to change prisons and the society which makes prisons the way they are.

Of course, all this is easy for us to say, because we are not inside. All too often jailhouse lawyers and activists face retaliation from guards due to their organizing and law suits. Chapter Three, Section G, Part 4 explains some legal options if you face retaliation. However, while the law may be able to stop abuse from happening in the future, and it can compensate you for your injuries, the law cannot guarantee that you will not be harmed. Only you know the risks that you are willing to take.

Finally, you should know that those of us who fight this struggle from the outside are filled with awe and respect at the courage of those of you who fight it, in so many different ways, on the inside.