Tracking Prison Censorship in the United States

Director Charles L. Ryan
1601 W. Jefferson
Phoenix, AZ 85007

25 August 2010

Director Ryan:

This letter is regarding the censorship of several articles of mail that were sent from MIM Distributors to Mr. XXX who is housed at ASPC Central Unit. For all of these articles of mail, we have not been sent any notifications from ASPC Central Unit mailroom staff as to why they were censored. This has been an ongoing issue, that you have been aware, of for nearly a year.

The first item I'd like to discuss is a magazine titled MIM Theory 2/3: Revolutionary Feminism (1992). This magazine was censored on 25 June 2010 per DO 914.08 policy #1.1.1 "Riots/Work Stoppages/Resistance." The Notice of Result - Publication Review did not provide a specific page number on which riots/work stoppages/resistance are supposedly mentioned, nor how the mention of these things legitimately affects the penological interests at ASPC Central Unit. Please refer me to the page number where this information can be found so that I may investigate the issue further. If this claim cannot be substantiated, please deliver the magazine to Mr. XXX without further delay.

Surely there is not a practice of censoring all major newspapers at ASPC Central Unit, or perusing them each day for mentions of riots/work stoppages/resistance. I doubt that a mention of any of these things would be related to the legitimate penological interests of the institution such that MIM Theory 2/3 should be censored.

The next two items were censored from Mr. XXX with no reasons given; the envelopes were simply returned to MIM Distributors from mailroom staff. One was a 1-page letter that outlined the prisoner-support legal work that MIM(Prisons) does and ways that prisoners can participate. The second letter was a study group response that Mr. XXX is a participant in. May I remind you that in October 2009 a prior study group response was arbitrarily censored from Mr. XXX and no sound answer was given as to why. I wrote you multiple letters regarding the October censorship and it was never resolved to my knowledge.

The fourth and final article of mail I'd like to address is the newsletter Under Lock & Key issue 14 (May/June 2010). As of 24 June 2010 this publication was still pending review. Please inform me of the final decision whether to censor Under Lock & Key issue 14 or not, and if so, please be explicit as to why.

In summary, the mailroom staff at ASPC Central Unit has been arbitrarily and illegally denying Mr. XXX mail that is sent from MIM Distributors for nearly a year. Furthermore, per Turner v. Safely, 482 U.S. 78, 89 (1987), the mailroom staff is granted the right to censor mail to the extent that they do so in a manner reasonably related to legitimate penological interests. Randomly checking one of thirty boxes is neither a thorough nor superficial explanation of how an item relates to the legitimate penological interest of the institution.

As an employee of the State of Arizona, you are obligated to respect both Mr. XXX's and MIM Distributors' First Amendment right to free speech. In your 22 April 2010 letter to me, you made it clear that you have no interest in doing this unless forced by a court. This is a serious and illegal situation that your staff is creating, and you are enabling, at ASPC Central Unit. I have several requests that I hope you can fulfill to remedy the issue:

1) The immediate end to interference of mail intended for Mr. XXX from MIM Distributors by ASPC Central Unit mailroom staff.

2) Explanation of why MIM Theory 2/3: Revolutionary Feminism (1992) allegedly violates DO 914.08 policy #1.1.1 "Riots/Work Stoppages/Resistance" and how this relates to the legitimate penological interests of the institution.

3) The results of the pending review of Under Lock & Key issue 14 (May/June 2010) and, if censored, a detailed explanation of why.

4) Reasons for why the study group response and legal letter mentioned above were returned to MIM Distributors with no explanation or notice.

We appreciate your timely response and efforts to resolve this illegal practice.

Sincerely,

MIM Distributors

CC: Affected parties