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| Supreme Court won't consider challenge to rules for Michigan prison workers |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 12/13/2004 |
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The Supreme Court declined to consider last Monday whether a state may bar corrections employees from socializing with prisoners and their families outside of work. Justices, without comment, let stand a lower ruling saying the rules were necessary to promote prison safety. The case involved Dawn Akers, a prison bookkeeper in Michigan who was fired for giving a parolee a ride to a job interview, and Kim Loranger, a probation officer who wrote letters to a prisoner held at a separate facility. They challenged a state corrections department rule banning employees from any non-work-related contact with prisoners, parolees and their families, claiming a violation of free speech and privacy rights. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Michigan, saying the rule was a reasonable attempt to promote safety in prisons. "Even clerical workers without any penal authority can by the mere manipulation of paperwork greatly affect an offender's status for better or worse, or at least be pressured into attempting to do so," the ruling states. Loranger was fired after she replied to letters from a man she previously dated who then was serving a life sentence. Akers had given a former prisoner she befriended a car ride after his release. Both employees previously had received favorable evaluations. After their discharge, labor arbitrators changed the punishment to brief suspensions. The corrections department eventually amended its rule to allow for exceptions in special circumstances. But the women continued their legal challenges, seeking money damages and requesting that their disciplinary records be wiped clean. |
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