Court Opinion

ID: 9474569
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 05:01:49.293477+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:44:11.241790
License: Public Domain

CLARK, Circuit Judge,
concurring in part and dissenting in part:
I concur in the majority’s decision to remand the First Amendment claim to the district court for further proceedings. I write to set forth my understanding of the First Amendment interest at stake in this case. I dissent from the majority’s decision to address appellants’ claim that they have standing to challenge the appellees’ actions on the ground they have denied other inmates adequate access to the courts. As appellants have not preserved this claim on appeal, it is not appropriately addressed by us. Because the majority has nonetheless discussed the issue, I must also express my view that the holding reflects an erroneous and unsupported view of the law.
I. First Amendment Claim
The majority apparently acknowledges that the activities undertaken by a jailhouse lawyer in assisting another inmate may be protected by the First Amendment, even if the jailhouse lawyer has no personal stake in the grievance. I agree with the majority that not every instance of prison writ writing is protected by the First Amendment. “[A] prison inmate retains [only] those First Amendment rights that are not inconsistent with his status as a prisoner or with the legitimate penological objectives of the corrections system.” Pell v. Procunier, 417 U.S. 817, 823, 94 S.Ct. 2800, 2804, 41 L.Ed.2d 495 (1974). “[T]he State may impose reasonable restrictions upon the acknowledged propensity of prisoners to abuse ... the giving ... of assistance.” Johnson v. Avery, 393 U.S. 483, 490, 89 S.Ct. 747, 751, 21 L.Ed.2d 718 (1969). But, in the absence of a legitimate penological or administrative reason for restricting the activities of a jailhouse lawyer, prison officials may not interfere with such activities. Simply stated, prison officials may not retaliate against an inmate because he or she assists other inmates in resolving legal problems without running afoul of the first amendment.
I agree that “[l]itigation undertaken in good faith by a prisoner motivated to bring about social change and protect constitutional rights in the prison” lies obviously at the core of values protected by the First Amendment. Maj.Op. at 1081 and 1082. Other legal activities are also protected by the First Amendment so long as they are conducted in a manner that is consistent with legitimate penological objectives. If general population inmates are allowed to associate with one another for some part of the day and one inmate spends this time helping another inmate to solve a legal problem, whether that problem involves unconstitutional prison conditions, habeas corpus, prison disciplinary proceedings, divorce, a tort action, sentence reduction, parole or an administrative appeal, prison officials may not punish the inmate solely because he or she has provided such assistance.
Neither may prison officials punish the jailhouse lawyer or restrict his or her activities as such because the legal proceeding sought by the jailhouse lawyer causes the kinds of problems for prison administration that legal proceedings typically cause for parties. Avoiding or sabotaging a prison conditions suit is not a legitimate penological objective. The belief that a law suit is frivolous or maliciously undertaken does not justify official interference with the jailhouse lawyer, for frivolousness and good faith are concerns of the courts and not the prison administration. Ex Parte Hull, 312 U.S. 546, 549, 61 S.Ct. 640, 642, 85 L.Ed.2d 1034 (1941).
*1084Moreover, the motivation of the jailhouse lawyer is irrelevant to the existence of a First Amendment right in speaking and associating with other inmates to render legal assistance. Since prisoners’ First Amendment interests are defined in terms of the legitimate policies of prison officials, there is no need to examine anything, but the effect of objective behavior on prison administration in determining whether a First Amendment interest exists. Prison administrators may place reasonable restrictions only on those outward manifestations of the jailhouse lawyer’s motivation that present problems for legitimate prison administration and discipline. For instance, prison officials may prohibit jailhouse lawyering for a fee, not because charging a fee reveals a state of mind that is not protected by the First Amendment, but because officials may have a legitimate administrative reason, such as preventing extortion, for prohibiting fee charging.
I see no benefit to be gained by limiting First Amendment protection to properly motivated activities, even if we could describe the kind of motive that warrants First Amendment protection. Rather, the motivation test requires the court to draw a line that is difficult, if not impossible, to discern. Difficulty is a very good “ ‘reason for avoiding the undertaking’ ” when the undertaking serves no purpose and is not required by precedent. See Maj.Op. supra 1082 n. 2 (quoting In re Primus, 436 U.S. 412, 98 S.Ct. 1893, 56 L.Ed.2d 417 (1978)). Primus, cited by the majority, involved the problem of balancing the First Amendment interest of civil rights attorneys in pursuing social reform goals against the established interest of the state in regulating solicitation by attorneys. Motivation was relevant to whether the civil rights attorneys were merely soliciting clients and therefore subject to regulation. Id. at 438-39 & n. 32, 98 S.Ct. at 1908 & n. 32. No such inquiry is necessary in this case. In the absence of some basis for limiting First Amendment protection to properly motivated expression and association, we ought not muddy the First Amendment inquiry by imposing such a limitation.
I appreciate that it may be difficult to define the contours of First Amendment restrictions on official action in the prison context. To some, it may seem anomalous that a person who has displayed disrespect for the rights of others retains any claim to the protection of individual rights. Yet, inmates retain some constitutional protections. Wolff v. McDonnell, 418 U.S. 539, 556, 94 S.Ct. 2963, 2974, 41 L.Ed.2d 935 (1974). Inmates also retain the right to invoke the protection of many state and federal laws if they can get their claims before the courts. At the same time, the state wields tremendous power as custodian. I can well imagine that the difficulties of managing a prison — a miniature society — make abuse of state power a constant temptation. Defining the First Amendment rights of inmates in terms of the legitimate interests and policies of prison administrators affords inmates some protection against such abuse while ensuring that prison officials will never be thwarted in any legitimate attempt to further penological policy or maintain prison discipline. Prison administration will not be balanced against the First Amendment because the interest in prison administration eliminates the First Amendment right. The First Amendment offers little enough protection to inmates without further restricting it to certain types of legal issues raised by persons motivated by the right concerns.
Thus, the jailhouse lawyer who alleges that prison officials have restricted his or her lawyering activities or punished him or her for those activities states a 1983 claim under the First Amendment. The character of the legal problem to which the activities are directed is irrelevant, as is the jailhouse lawyer’s motivation unless such motivation interferes with legitimate penological concerns, such as fee charging.1
*1085Given these principles, Adams and Piccirillo have clearly stated a First Amendment claim about which disputed issues of material fact remain. They claim that they were dismissed from their jobs as law clerks, prohibited from using the Polk law library, forbidden to provide legal assistance to other inmates and transferred to a more punitive institution not for any legitimate penological reason but in retaliation for their activities as jailhouse lawyers. The majority, however, refuses to take a position on the sufficiency of appellants’ claim and remands the case so that the district court may make a determination rendered difficult by the majority’s narrow treatment of the issue. I agree that this case should be returned to the district court, but would hold that Adams and Piccirillo have stated a first amendment claim and remand for resolution of the factual disputes.
II. Standing to Raise Other Inmates’Access to Courts Claim
The issue whether Adams and Piccirillo have standing to challenge their transfers on the ground the transfers denied other inmates access to the courts was presented in appellants’ complaint and addressed by the district court. However, Adams and Piccirillo failed to request relief consistent with this claim in their complaint and have not so much as mentioned it in subsequent motions. Most significantly, Adams and Piccirillo have not appealed from that part of the district court’s order denying their standing to assert the interest of other inmates. The issue is not part of this case and should not have been addressed by the majority. I therefore dissent from the majority’s holding that “[i]n a non-class-action context a prisoner has no standing to litigate another prisoner’s claim of denial of access to the courts.” Maj.Op. at 1080. I write further to express my conviction that the majority’s resolution of this issue is contrary to controlling Supreme Court precedent and will, as a practical matter, serve to prevent redress of claims that inmates are denied access to the courts.
Whether or not Adams and Piccirillo have any personal stake in the deprivation suffered by other inmates as a result of their transfer, Johnson v. Avery, 393 U.S. 483, 89 S.Ct. 747, 21 L.Ed.2d 718 (1969), directs that they be allowed to press the Sixth Amendment rights of other inmates.
In Johnson v. Avery, the Supreme Court considered the petition for a writ of habeas corpus of an inmate “writ writer” who had been placed in a maximum security building for violating a prison regulation that proscribed inmate legal assistance. The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Sixth Circuit denying the petition, not because the inmate had demonstrated that the punishment he suffered violated his own constitutional rights, but because the state had not yet demonstrated that it provided a reasonable alternative to inmate legal assistance to ensure that other inmates had adequate access to the courts. Id. at 489-90, 89 S.Ct. at 751. Although the Court’s opinion does not discuss the issue of the writ writer’s standing to pursue the access to courts claim of other inmates, we may assume the question was considered, for it was raised in the dissenting opinion of Justice White. Id. at 501, 89 S.Ct. at 757. Other courts, following Johnson v. Avery, have held that a jailhouse lawyer whose services have been prohibited, either by a blanket rule or by an order pertaining only to that inmate, has standing to challenge the prohibition on the ground it deprives other inmates of access to the courts. See McDonald v. Hall, 610 F.2d 16, 19 (1st Cir.1979); Buise v. Hudkins, 584 F.2d at 227 (7th Cir.1978); Haymes v. Montanye, 547 F.2d 188, 191 (2d Cir.1976), cert. denied, 431 U.S. 967, 97 S.Ct. 2925, 53 L.Ed.2d 1063 (1977).
Allowing jailhouse lawyers to press the interest of other inmates could have a limited remedial consequence if prison officials demonstrate that the other inmates enjoy constitutionally adequate access to the courts. The writ writer plaintiff then would not be entitled to reinstatement. Even were the writ writer to prevail on the claim, the court would be permitted to order that prison officials provide reasonable *1086alternatives to the writ writer’s assistance if the officials did not wish to reinstate the plaintiff. Johnson v. Avery, 393 U.S. at 489-90, 89 S.Ct. at 751.2
When the Supreme Court decided Johnson v. Avery, it recognized that inmates who are illiterate or poorly educated will effectively be denied access to the courts if they are not allowed to receive assistance from other inmates. The Court realized that the effect of denying third party standing to the jailhouse lawyer would be to eliminate the right of access to the courts of those inmates who, because they are not capable of representing themselves, are most vulnerable to restriction of access. It is therefore especially important that the jailhouse lawyer be accorded standing to litigate on behalf of other inmates, as well as the broadest personal protection consistent with the demands of prison administration. When prison officials retaliate for providing legal assistance by restricting the jailhouse lawyer’s activities, relief should be available.
Were this issue squarely before us, I would hold that a jailhouse lawyer who claims to have suffered retaliation for his or her activities may challenge the retaliation on the ground it denies other inmates access to the courts.3 As the issue is not before us, I dissent from the majority's decision to address it.4

. Fee charging alleged here by defendants was not reached as an issue of fact because of the district court's summary dismissal.

. I express no opinion as to whether Johnson v. Avery creates in the writ writer a personal right, grounded in the Sixth Amendment, to act as such. See Navarette v. Enomoto, 536 F.2d 277 (9th Cir.1976), rev’d on other grounds sub nom. Procunier v. Navarette, 434 U.S. 555, 98 S.Ct. 855, 55 L.Ed.2d 24 (1978); Vaughn v. Trotter, 516 F.Supp. 886, 893 (M.D.Tenn.1980).

. I express no opinion as to whether any inmate should be allowed to assert the claim that other inmates are being denied access to the courts, regardless of the plaintiff-inmate’s relationship to the injury.

. Adams and Piccirillo also raised the claim that their own access to the courts was denied when they were forbidden to use the Polk law library. This claim was also waived when not presented on appeal and the majority properly remains silent on the issue.