Censorship Survey Results

"Yes. It is often cancelled. The law books are out dated & the computer is hardly ever uodated."
IL/Wicc

"Yes. I can get there and what is needed most of the time"
NBCI

"Yes. No they are not. Not always and its hard to request materials. Yes there are - materials will not be copied, and most are outdated."
Indiana/ IYC

"Yes. Only 3 per week cases or papers. No books are available."
IN 46168

"Yes. N/A"
Cook County Jail

"Yes. "
Cook County Jail

"Yes. The law librarian comes to us upon requests given to the counselor, we no longer have access to the physical Law Library since COVID and even then, only certain divisions have a law library within. I do not receive materials need. I cannot get copies made of my certificates to give to my PD because law librarian wont copy them since they are not "legal documents""
CCDOC/IL

"Yes. It's open to anyone daily, all you need to do is go to our library. Well not sundays, and 1 computer in each unit for law library, but privacy- from heehlers & nosy people - can cause people to hesitate - does make others hesitate."
llinois, USP-Marion

"Yes. It's not hard to get to the law library, if the prison isn't on lockdown but we seem to be on lockdown a lot because of so called "staff shortage." When I do go to the law library, I'm able to get the materials that I need."
Westville Correctional Facility

"Yes. Access is minimal and difficult to get."
IL, Jacksonville

"Yes. Tough to get a pass to the law library, no proper help when you get there"
IL, Hill corrctr

"Yes. "
Pinckneyuine

"Yes. The law library here is terrible! You can only be there 30 minutes. And go once a week by a pass. And a lot of time they are out of toner so you can't make copies."
Ind, New Castle

"Yes. Access is good. We have Lexis Nexis on computers. They only have what they want us to have. Have no state law."
USP Marion

"Yes. Tough to get, lack of legal knowledge, and miscommunication."
Cook County Jail

"No. No, I am in Restrictive Housing Unit and the facility is constantly short staffed and incarcerated individuals are not getting adequate access to Law Library. Corrupt staff/officers destroying outgoing legal mail & domestic mail."
Westville Correctional Facility

"Yes. Yes, I cannot receive the proper forms from the education department, where the law library is located."
USP-Beaumont

"Yes. In frequent visits (max 4/mo) old material. But, installed kiosks that have slowly brought us into the 21st century."
IL Menard Doc

"Yes. No its not tough."
Dixon. C.C

"Yes. We can go to the law library only if you have deadlines to meet. This facility has a library but we are not allowed to go to it because they can't keep enough staff here to run the prison. So we are not allowed to use the library."
Miami Corr Fac Indiana

"No. USP Thompson deny me any law library access for 8 months. USP Coleman I is lock down so much, we have no access to computers & staff won't answer requests or assist."
USP-Coleman I

"Yes. Primary barrier is hours of operation."
Elkton FCI

"No. Yes! Since I'm in protective custody I am denied proper and adequate access to the law library."
Westville Correctional Facility

"Yes. You can easily go to the law library but you are not allowed to walk around and do your own research. You have to know what you are requesting ahead of time, then they bring it to your if they have it. Usually they don't."
Pinckneyville Correctional Center

"Yes. It is not an easy task to get into the law library. You have to know one of the law clerks to gain meaningful access."
Menard CC IL

"Yes. Only thing I don't like about the law library here is when she's not here, we have to wait till she comes back. One time it was 3 weeks - blue me 🙂 lol."
CCDOC

"Yes. I have only used the computer at the law library. As long as there is a guard there to open it, the library is accessable."
Federal Satellite Low Elkton

"Yes. Sometimes it hit, can be difficult, lack of prison guards."
Salinas Valley State Prison

"Yes. It's on several computers in the library and on one in the housing unit. We have access, but it's not updated as often as I'd life and it does not include state laws."
Federal Corr Inst. Perkin, IL

"Yes. Hard to get passes, they pick and choose when you go, you might have to put in several requests."
Pinckneyville Prison Facility

"Yes. Passes are easy to get."
Big Muddy River CC IL

"Yes. Our law library is on our tablets at NDSP."
North Dakota State Penitentiary

"Yes. I don't go to law library."
Big Muddy River CC IL

"Yes. I go twice a week to represent myself in court. Yes, materials are hard to get only 3 case per week, can't check law books out, etc."
Big Muddy River CC IL

"Yes. We can go once a week, I can get what I need. Readily available - NO!."
Wabash Valley Correctional Facility, IN

"No. Im in seg. so no access to law library. Theoretically I can send a request for general books and recieve them. But I cant becasue they dont give out lists of titles."
N/A

"Yes. Not the best offer to inmates, they have lexis, I prefer west law. They have benders encyclopedia, I prefer American jurisprudenal. Lot mor information with my preference."
N/A

"Yes. I put in to go to the general library and never recieved a pass to go. And I dont get the materials I need because of that reason."
Pinckneyville Corr. Ctr.

"Yes. Once a week in law library for 1 hour if you're lucky. Very little help. Never enough time."
Centralia corrections

"Yes. If you want to call it that and we have no real law clerk."
IDOC Vianna CC

"Yes. It's easy to get to the law library on most occasions, materials as simple as writing utensils are not provided."
Indiana/ISF

"Yes. Staff being here so we can get what little material they do have to offer. Lazy staff; computer not up to date."
IL, Marlor

"Yes. There are barriers that are easily over come with $"
I.S.P

"Yes. But barely, each law library in TDCJ is poor they dont have shit, locking up innocent and guilty people in slave state texas is big money. Be found guilty you become a slave."
Clifford Clark

"Yes. Sometimes its hard to get a pass other its easy. Depending if you are in solitary confinement it can be almost impossible."
PA-Rockview

"Yes. I have access to the law library but not like we used to back in the days of 2005-2015. There's days that the law clerk are not here because of meetings that she attends, and because sometimes we are on lockdown, and when we do have law library we dont get the assistance that I am searching for."
Dixon-Illinois

"Yes. Very easy to access at this place"
FCI Pekin

"No. Not unless you have an Open Case! And can now only order books from 2 vendors."
WIDOC Taycheedah

"Yes. "
WI Oshkosh

"Yes. This is a real challenge. yes you have access, but it is a matter of luck and availiability. The situation raises the issue of constitutionality."
WI Stanley Correctional

"Yes. This place is so understaffed and poorly run, they have trouble getting us 2 showers a week. Inmates regularly end up on academic probation because the Security Office cancels school passes so frequently. Currently, they're denying us access to the law library in violation of constitutional rights.
Under normal circumstances it's difficult unless you have a court deadline. Those passes are prioritized. And even those are subject to the frequent cancellations Wapun suffers. It's expected that all non-medical Friday passes will get cancelled, and often school/library passes are cancelled during other days of the week as well. The regular library gets cancelled so much it can take weeks. Under our current lockdown, which the Warden stated in a memo has no set end date, they are illegally denying us any access to the law library. I wrote the legal librarian requesting copies of specific policies and he denied me, telling me I didn't need them. Obviously it's not up to him to decide what information I do and do not need. The denial of access to the law library violates the findings of Marshall v. Knight, 445 f.3d 965, 969 (7th Cir. 2006) and Corgain v Miller, 708 f.2d 1241, 1250 (7th Cir. 1983)."
WIDOC Waupun

"Yes. LImited resources and outdated books are all we have. The Blacks Law Dictionary we have is from the 8th edition, Black Law is on the 11th edition but they rely on donations they say."
MCC Chicago

"Yes. I signed up for book club when they had it prior to COVID but it was never added to the count. Only special inmates were hand picked. They do not allow any group meetings here, unless it is a count letter (none today). Law library: unless you have a deadline date, it is almost always impossible to get in. There are selective things you can get: they (law library supervsiors) will not do research on the net."
Indiana Pendleton

"Yes. Passes are uniformly difficult ro receive and simple 'dates' on requests is the common cause. "Materials are available but are doled out per strict, specific purposes. Form requests, if not exact, are often discarded without knowledge."
Indiana, Westville

"Yes. Lack of understanding the legal wording. Not able to get motions."
FCI Butner

"Yes. Easy to access actually. Its all on the computers now, readily available, one thing the facility does right."
USP Marion

"Yes. Hard to tell. Maybe 40 minutes in a week. We have no librarian. The library is dying: no new book budget for many years. I can't even get copies of my own stories for pay. 15c a page."
WI/JCI

"Yes. It is online and we only have one computer with access to it, for over 100 inmates in the unit"
FCI Petersburg

"Yes. We can go almost 5 days a week and all materials are available easily via Westlaw (a computer program)"
WIDOC

"Yes. Not tough to get. Certain materials such as Lexis Nexis you cannot get (no paying the fee)"
NCCF