I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4335 
To provide for the redress of prison abuses, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 16, 2009 
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To provide for the redress of prison abuses, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Prison Abuse Remedies 
Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. SHOWING OF PHYSICAL INJURY NOT MANDATORY 
FOR CLAIMS. 
(a) CIVIL RIGHTS OF INSTITUTIONALIZED PERSONS 
ACT.—Section 7 of the Civil Rights of Institutionalized 
Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e) is amended by striking 
subsection (e). 
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(b) TITLE 28.—Section 1346(b) of title 28, United 
States Code, is amended by striking paragraph (2). 
SEC. 3. STAYING OF NONFRIVOLOUS CIVIL ACTIONS TO 
PERMIT RESOLUTION THROUGH ADMINIS-
TRATIVE PROCESSES. 
Subsection (a) of section 7 of the Civil Rights of In-
stitutionalized Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e(a)) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(a) ADMINISTRATIVE REMEDIES.— 
‘‘(1) PRESENTATION.—No claim with respect to 
prison conditions under section 1979 of the Revised 
statutes (42 U.S.C. 1983), or any other Federal law, 
by a prisoner confined in any jail, prison, or other 
correctional facility shall be adjudicated except 
under section 1915A(b) of title 28, United States 
Code, until the claim has been presented for consid-
eration to officials of the facility in which the claim 
arose. Such presentation satisfies the requirement of 
this paragraph if it provides prison officials of the 
facility in which the claim arose with reasonable no-
tice of the prisoner’s claim, and if it occurs within 
the generally applicable limitations period for filing 
suit. 
‘‘(2) STAY.—If a claim included in a complaint 
has not been presented as required by paragraph 
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(1), and the court does not dismiss the claim under 
section 1915A(b) of title 28, United States Code, 
the court shall stay the action for a period not to 
exceed 90 days and shall direct prison officials to 
consider the relevant claim or claims through such 
administrative process as they deem appropriate. 
However, the court shall not stay the action if the 
court determines that the prisoner is in danger of 
immediate harm. 
‘‘(3) PROCEEDING.—Upon the expiration of the 
stay under paragraph (2), the court shall proceed 
with the action except to the extent the court is noti-
fied by the parties that it has been resolved.’’. 
SEC. 4. EXEMPTION OF JUVENILES FROM PRISON LITIGA-
TION REFORM ACT. 
(a) TITLE 18.— 
(1) JUVENILE PROCEEDINGS.—Section 3626(g) 
of title 18, United States Code, is amended— 
(A) in paragraph (3) by striking ‘‘or adju-
dicated delinquent for,’’; and 
(B) so that paragraph (5) reads as follows: 
‘‘(5) the term ‘prison’ means any Federal, 
State, or local facility that incarcerates or detains 
prisoners;’’. 
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(2) ADULT CONVICTIONS.—Section 3626 of title 
18, United States Code, is amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(h) EXCLUSION OF CHILD PRISONERS.—This sec-
tion does not apply with respect to a prisoner who has 
not attained the age of 18 years.’’. 
(b) CIVIL RIGHTS OF INSTITUTIONALIZED PERSONS 
ACT.— 
(1) Section 7(h) of the Civil Rights of Institu-
tionalized Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e(h)), is 
amended by striking ‘‘or adjudicated delinquent 
for,’’. 
(2) Section 7 of the Civil Rights of Institu-
tionalized Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e) is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(i) EXCLUSION OF CHILD PRISONERS.—This sec-
tion does not apply with respect to a prisoner who has 
not attained the age of 18 years.’’. 
(c) TITLE 28.—Title 28, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in section 1915(h)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘who has attained the age 
of 18 years’’ after ‘‘means any person’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘or adjudicated delinquent 
for,’’; and 
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(2) in section 1915A(c)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘who has attained the age 
of 18 years’’ after ‘‘means any person’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘or adjudicated delinquent 
for,’’. 
SEC. 5. MODIFICATION OF BAN ON MULTIPLE IN FORMA 
PAUPERIS CLAIMS. 
Section 1915(g) of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) by inserting ‘‘within the preceding 5 years’’ 
after ‘‘3 or more occasions’’; and 
(2) by striking ‘‘, malicious, or fails to state a 
claim upon which relief may be granted’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘or malicious’’. 
SEC. 6. FILING FEES IN FORMA PAUPERIS. 
Section 1915(b)(1) of title 28, United States Code, 
is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘or files an appeal’’; and 
(2) by inserting ‘‘and the action is dismissed at 
initial screening pursuant to subsection (e)(2) of this 
section, section 1915A of this title, or section 7(c)(1) 
of the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act 
(42 
U.S.C. 
1997e(c)(1)),’’ 
after 
‘‘in 
forma 
pauperis,’’. 
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SEC. 7. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT TO RESOLVE AMBIGUITY. 
Section 1915(a)1) of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ‘‘that includes a statement of all as-
sets such prisoner possesses’’ and inserting ‘‘(including a 
statement of assets such person possesses)’’. 
SEC. 8. ENCOURAGEMENT OF APPROPRIATE SETTLEMENT 
OF PRISONER LITIGATION. 
Section 3626(c)(1) of title 18, United States Code, 
is amended, by striking the period at the end and inserting 
‘‘, except that the violation of a Federal right may be al-
leged by plaintiff rather than proven or stipulated.’’. 
SEC. 9. JUDICIAL DISCRETION IN CRAFTING PRISON ABUSE 
REMEDIES. 
Section 3626 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(2) by striking the final 
sentence; 
(2) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by inserting ‘‘if that 
party demonstrates that it has eliminated the viola-
tion of the Federal right that gave rise to the pro-
spective relief and that the violation is reasonably 
unlikely to recur’’ after ‘‘intervener’’; 
(3) in subsection (b)(1)(B), by adding at the 
end the following: ‘‘Nothing in this section shall pre-
vent the court from extending any of the time peri-
ods set out in subsection (A), if the court finds, at 
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