|
|
| Court OKs Closure of Inmate Law Clinic, But Begs It to Reconsider |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 07/14/2003 |
|
A federal appeals court said it can't stop officials from shutting down a three-decade-old inmate-run law clinic at Pennsylvania's biggest maximum security prison, but, in an unusual aside, the judges begged officials to keep it open. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday said the Para-Professional Law Clinic has been the only reliable source of legal aid for inmates at the state prison in Graterford. Aside from the clinic, legal resources for prisoners are few, the court said. Graterford's two law libraries are chronically understaffed and often closed. The prison has few translators. Its single paralegal splits her time between two positions and also covers seven other institutions, leaving her little time for inmates. 'We encourage defendants in the strongest possible terms to reconsider any plan they may have to close the clinic,' wrote judge Maryanne Trump Barry. 'If the defendants were to close the clinic, they would need to completely overhaul the system of legal assistance at Graterford to ensure that inmates have the requisite access to the courts. The clinic provides a valuable service both to the inmates whom it assists and to the courts before whom the inmates' cases come, including this court.' At the same time, however, the court said a judge was correct in ruling that an injunction that had long prevented the clinic's closure should be lifted. The prisoners, Barry wrote, had not proven that the clinic's closure would violate their constitutional rights. The inmates' attorney, Angus Love, said he was disappointed the court lifted the injunction, but is pleased with its endorsement of the clinic's work. He said prison officials recently tried to improve legal resources for inmates by installing 14 computers for legal research and offering some of the clinic's workers paid positions in an expanded law library. 'I thinks the steps they have taken suggest that they are listening,' Love said. He said an appeal is unlikely. The clinic was founded informally by a group of inmates in 1971 and has been registered as a nonprofit corporation since 1976. About 20 inmates work there now, the court said, in exchange for a small pay from the Department of Corrections. Recently the clinic has been handling about 1,700 cases a year. Its staff of inmates, many of whom have learned about the legal system behind bars, help fellow prisoners appeal convictions, file civil rights petitions and apply for parole. State officials have been trying to shut the clinic down since 1977 - in part because inmates at other state jails aren't offered a similar service. Judges have twice prevented them from doing so. Injunctions keeping the center open had been in place since 1978. Department of Corrections spokeswoman Susan McNaughton said officials plan to bolster the law library at Graterford and have it take over many of the tasks previously performed by the clinic, which is to be phased out over time. |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think