Depending on the security level of the prison and the physical layout, a security guard may or may not be stationed in the library. Most librarians feel fairly safe in their workplace, as inmate behaviour is strictly regulated and monitored; Another incentive to behave properly is that no inmate wants their access to the law library restricted. The presence of a security guard is generally welcomed by the librarian, who then has more opportunities to travel around the institution and attend meetings, trainings or other activities. The officer can answer the phone and supervise guests and inmate staff. The security of the collection is important for financial and legal reasons. The cost of replacing legal publications is high, and if volumes or pages are missing, inmates can sue and claim that they have been denied the right to an appropriate legal library. Nothing below is a recommendation or opinion of NIC. What is provided is information and resources so that you can make an informed decision about how inmates at your institution can access legal documents and courts, including a law library in the prison itself. Typewriters are usually provided for correspondence and filling out forms. Some law libraries have PCs with legal forms stored on the hard drive. While there has been a reluctance to allow inmates to use computers for non-educational or professional purposes, the trend towards wider adoption is inevitable in places where professional and effective operations are paramount. In most prisons, interlibrary loan includes both general and legal library materials. Above all, articles from the Overview of the Law and copies of case law from other countries are in demand.
As this service is not compulsory, it may be denied to inmates who abuse this privilege. Law library directors have also found it useful to be certified notaries, as many of the documents inmates send to the courts must be publicly notarized. Similarly, for convenience, most libraries have a stock of commonly used legal forms or master forms that can be duplicated. In addition to general assistance with reference work, law library staff are often called upon to refer members to sources of legal aid outside the institution. Civil library staff should carefully distinguish between referral legal aid and legal advice. The latter, coupled with the drafting of legal documents and the active role played in prisoner trials, could be interpreted as « unlicensed exercise of law » and has sometimes resulted in lawsuits by disgruntled clients. The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees state detainees the right to « reasonable, effective, and reasonable » access to justice. Grenzen v.
Smith, 430 USA 817, 822, 97 S.Ct. 1491, 1495, 52 L.Ed.2d 72 (1977); Grün v. Johnson, 977 F.2d 1383, 1389 (10th Cir.1992). We impose « positive obligations » on states to ensure access to justice for all detainees and assistance in the preparation and filing of legal documents. Ramos v. Lamm, 639 F.2d 559, 583 (10th Cir.1980), cert. denied, 450 U.S. 1041, 101 S.Ct. 1759, 68 L.Ed.2d 239 (1981). The Supreme Court ordered that states could discharge this duty « by providing prisoners with appropriate legal libraries or appropriate assistance to persons trained in law. » Bounds, 430 U.S. to 828, 97 S.C. to 1498.
Although this constitutional obligation does not require states to grant inmates unrestricted access to a library, Twyman v. Crisp, 584 F.2d 352, 358 (10th Cir.1978), and that there is no rigid or static formula for judging whether the resources of a prison library are constitutional, Johnson v. Moore, 948 F.2d 517, 521 (9th Cir. 1991), states must give detainees « a reasonably reasonable opportunity » to assert their legal rights. Religious library materials, such as books and study plans, are available upon request from the chaplain. Answer: Like so many problems with corrections, the answer is: it depends. It is not necessarily about having a legal library, but rather about providing adequate access to legal documents and courts. From a constitutional point of view, the purpose of the Law Library is to comply with an order of the Supreme Court. From the law library`s perspective, the goal is to provide a collection of books and other resources that inmates can use to conduct legal research.