West Virginia Code of State Rules › Agency 95 - Jails And Prisons Standards Commission › Title 95 - LEGISLATIVE RULE JAIL AND CORRECTIONAL FACILITY STANDARDS COMMISSION › Series 95-02 - Minimum Standards For Construction, Operation And Maintenance Of Correctional Facilities › Section 95-2-15 - Inmates Rights

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 28, July 12, 2024
15.1. Access to
						Courts. Inmates have the right to have access to courts to present any issue,
						including challenging the legality of their conviction of confinement; seeking
						redress for illegal conditions or treatment while under correctional control;
						pursuing remedies in connection with civil legal problems; and asserting
						against correctional or other government authority any other rights protected
						by constitutional or statutory provision or common law. Inmates seeking
						judicial relief shall not be subjected to reprisals or penalties as a
						consequence of their action.
15.2.
						Access to Attorneys. Procedures shall ensure and facilitate the right of
						inmates to have access to attorneys or their authorized
						representatives.
15.3. Access to
						Law Library. Procedures shall provide for the right of inmates to have access
						to an appropriate law library and to supplies and services related to legal
						matters. The law library shall include, at a minimum, relevant and up-to-date
						constitutional, statutory and case law materials, applicable court rules, and
						practice treatises.
15.4. Access to
						Supplies. The correctional facility shall make reasonable efforts to assist
						inmates with the preparation and processing of their legal documents. Items
						such as paper, typewriters, and carbon paper shall be provided all inmates upon
						request and be available free of charge to indigent inmates.
15.5. Equal Access. When male and female
						inmates are housed in the same correctional facility, there shall be separate
						sleeping quarters, but equal access to all available services and programs.
						Neither sex shall be denied opportunities solely on the basis of their smaller
						number in the population.
15.6.
						Refusal to Participate. Procedures shall provide inmates with the option to
						refuse to participate in secondary or post-secondary education, vocational
						training, religious services, social services and counseling, psychological and
						psychiatric treatment, library services, athletic, recreational and leisure
						time activities, involvement with community groups, mail and visiting, contact
						by media, contact by attorneys or legal representatives, volunteer programs and
						pre-release programs. Inmates must accept work assignments, enrollment in basic
						education programs, medical and dental care mandated by statute, and
						participation in other programs ordered by the sentencing court or required by
						statute. Inmates shall not be penalized for refusing to participate in the
						correctional facility's total rehabilitation program.
15.7. Personal Grooming. Inmates shall be
						permitted freedom in personal grooming as long as their appearance does not
						conflict with the correctional facility's requirements for safety, security,
						identification and hygiene.
15.8.
						Grievance Procedure. There shall be a written inmate grievance procedure which
						is made available to all inmates and which includes at least one level of
						appeal. The correctional facility's grievance mechanism shall include the
						following: provision for written responses to all grievances, including the
						reasons for the decision; provision for response within a prescribed,
						reasonable time limit, with special provisions for responding to emergencies;
						provision for supervisory review of grievances; provision for participation by
						staff and inmates in the design and operation of the grievance procedures;
						provision for access by all inmates, with guarantees against reprisals;
						applicability over a broad range of issues; and means for resolving questions
						of jurisdiction.