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Santa Rosa Inmates Can Again Send Regular Mail
February 15, 2012
Inmates in the Santa Rosa County Jail can once again send letters to friends and family.
In 2010, Sheriff Wendall Hall implemented a postcard-only policy which restricted inmates’ mail to postcards unless it was considered “privileged” mail to courts, attorneys, government officials or agencies or the news media. Because non-privileged mail is inspected before being sent out, the postcard-only policy was meant to reduce employee workload and expense.
The ACLU and the Florida Justice Institute filed a lawsuit in September, 2010 alleging that the policy restricting jail inmates’ ability to communicate with family and friends by limiting their mail to short, publicly viewable messages on postcards was a violation of their First Amendment right to free speech.
Under a settlement, inmates will now be allowed to send a limited number of letters in envelopes to non-privileged recipients.
According to the ACLU, the sheriff also agreed to pay $135,000 in attorney’s fees and costs associated with the case.
Comments
One Response to “Santa Rosa Inmates Can Again Send Regular Mail”
sons of the Sunshine law also. State gets paid to house inmates,they charge them with fees and keep half the money,and not to mention the fees the kiosk charges fmily members going through a crisis with having a inmate in jail paying for bills and unemployed its causing a hardship and rebound effect the ripple will take years to recoup from. Someone stop this double standard and stick up for the rights of people being unjustlifable fees ,not counting the ones the court charges them for fines.Oh my Lord will someone listen.