Legal resources for people in prison in California

1540 Market Street, Suite 490

San Francisco, CA 94102

http://www.prisonerswithchildren.org

(415) 552-3150 Fax

(415) 255-7036 Main

Serves: National,CA

Focus area/description: LSPC advocates for the human rights and empowerment of incarcerated parents, children, family members and people at risk for incarceration. We respond to requests for information, trainings, technical assistance, litigation, community activism and the development of more advocates. Our focus is on women prisoners and their families, and we emphasize that issues of race are central to any discussion of incarceration. LSPC does not take on individual cases, but provides legal resources and general information with an emphasis on California law.

General Delivery

San Quentin, CA 94964

http://www.prisonlaw.com

Serves: CA

Focus area/description: The Prison Law Office provides free legal services to California state prisoners, and occasionally to California state parolees. Assistance is generally limited to cases regarding conditions of confinement. Further, the office does not typically assist or represent prisoners in lawsuits in which money damages are the primary objective. Instead, the office focuses on cases in which a change in conditions is sought. The office attempts to resolve such cases informally, if possible (by advocating to prison officials), or through formal litigation. With regard to condition of confinement matters, the decision to assist with any particular case depends on the issue or problem presented, the chance of success, the amount of time and resource necessary to properly assist, the office's resources, staff availability and caseload. The Prison Law Office publishes and periodically updates The California State Prisoners Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide to Prison and Parole Law. Click here for Ordering Information. The Prison Law Office is also happy to provide self-help and informational materials to prisoners, some of which are published on their website, including a habeas corpus manual, parolee rights manual, and personal injury lawsuit packet, as well as material regarding administrative remedies, divorce, guard brutality, immigration, loss of personal property, plea bargains, release dates, workers' compensation, and worktime credits. If you or a family member believe the Prison Law Office can assist with one of the above issues, please feel free to contact their office. Letters concerning individual prisoners and prison conditions can be addressed to: Prison Law Office General Delivery San Quentin, CA 94964. Due to the large number of inquiries, the Prison Law Office cannot accept telephone calls from prisoners and their families.

P.O. Box 87131

San Diego, CA 92138-7131

http://www.aclusandiego.org/

619-232-2121 x240

Serves: CA

Focus area/description: The ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties fights for individual rights and fundamental freedoms for all. The ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties only serves those in the two counties. Please mail ALL requests for legal assistance.

Columbia Human Rights Law Review, Attn: JLM Order

435 W. 116th St.

New York, NY 10027

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/hrlr/jlm.html#Order

jlm.board.mail@gmail.com

(212) 854-1601

Serves: National

Focus area/description: A Jailhouse Lawyer's Manual (JLM) is a handbook of legal rights and procedures designed for use by people in prison. Prisoners are often indigent and therefore lack access to legal counsel while in prison. The JLM informs prisoners of their legal rights, shows them how to secure these rights through the judicial process, and guides them through the complex array of procedures and legal vocabulary which make up this system. The JLM also instructs prisoners in techniques of legal research and explains the need to take note of important legal developments. With the JLM, prisoners can learn to use effectively the resources available in prison law libraries. Since publication of the first edition in 1978, A Jailhouse Lawyer's Manual has been used by tens of thousands of prisoners in institutions across the country. Prisoners have used the book to become informed of their rights and to address specific problems related to their treatment in prison or their convictions.

How do I place an order? Complete and send the order form below with a check or money order, payable to Columbia Human Rights Law Review to Columbia Human Rights Law Review, Attn: JLM Order, 435 W. 116th St., New York, NY 10027. If you send a money order, keep the receipt in case there is a problem with your order. We do not accept postage stamps as payment and also do not accept credit cards. Due to the nature of the institutional mail systems, we request that you allow up to eight weeks from the date of your order. Because our office is student run, your order may not be processed as quickly over school breaks. Orders to be sent to facilities in Michigan must be sent first class. Also, please inform us on this form of any restrictions on incoming mail that your facility may have (for example, no padded envelopes or first class mail only). Please note that we cannot fill orders without payment.

ORDER FORM
YOUR NAME:
YOUR ADDRESS:
YOUR PHONE NUMBER:
PERSON TO WHOM THE BOOK SHOULD BE SENT:
ID NUMBER (If applicable):
INSTITUTION:
ADDRESS
CITY:
STATE:
ZIP:
ORDER (Please circle the price): Standard shipping requires 4-6 weeks.
1st Class shipping 1-2 weeks. All prisoner orders are sent via 1st Class Mail

P.O. Box 128

Lewisburg, PA 17837-0128

http://www.eg.bucknell.edu/~mligare/LPP.html

(570) 523-1104 phone

Serves: National,PA

Focus area/description: The Lewisburg Prison Project, Inc. is a non-profit organization that provides legal and other assistance to prisoners in Central Pennsylvania. The Lewisburg Prison Project (LLP) counsels and assists prisoners who write LLP when they encounter treatment they perceive as illegal or unfair. LLP's geographic coverage area includes four federal institutions (Allenwood, Lewisburg, McKean, and Schuylkill), 11 Pennsylvania state prisons, and 34 county jails in the middle district of Pennsylvania. LLP writes to and visits inmates and assists them by talking to prison authorities, furnishing inmates with appropriate legal materials, and evaluating individual cases to determine if they wish to represent inmates in civil litigation. In addition to communicating with prisoners in central Pennsylvania, the LLP distributes publications to inmates nationwide at a nominal fee. A partial list of LLP's Legal Bulletins includes the following titles: Legal Research, Religious Rights, First Amendment, Access to Courts, Exhausting Administrative Remedies, Disciplinary Hearings, Racial/Religious Discrimination, Assaults, and Medical Rights. Most of these Legal Bulletins are available on-line. To order print copies by mail, you can write for a current list of publications and prices. Prices are always subject to change. As of September 2006, the following titles were available for the prices listed below:
Set 1: Litigation
__ 1.1 Civil Actions in Federal Court: How to select, file,and follow legal actions (2005) $3.00
__ 1.2 Legal Research: Guide to Legal Research (2005) $1.50
__ 1.3 Access to Records : How to get your records; privacy. $1.50 (2005)
__ 1.5 Federal Tort Claims (F.T.C.A.) (2008) $1.50
__ 1.8 Injunctive Relief (2002) $1.50
Set 2: First Amendment
__ 2.1 Religious Rights in Prison (2005) $1.50
__ 2.3 Speech, Association, Visitation (2008) $1.50
Set 4: Status
__ 4.1 Rights of Pretrial Detainees (2000) $1.50
Set 6: Due Process Inside Prison
__ 6.1 Disciplinary Hearings (2002) $1.50
__ 6.4 Urinalysis (2002) $1.50
Set 7: “Cruel and Unusual Punishment” 8th Amendment
__ 7.1 Assaults and Beatings: Assaults by Staff or Inmates (2008) $1.50
__ 7.3 Conditions of Confinement: Heat, exercise, etc. (2008) $1.50
Set 8: Medical Care
__8.1 Medical Rights (2008) $1.75
__8.2 Psychiatric & Disability Rights (2008) $1.75
__8.3 AIDS in Prison (2000) $1.50
Set 9: Post-Conviction
__9.1 Post-Conviction Remedies (2005) $2.25
__9.2 Detainers: Choices and strategies (2000) $1.50
__9.3 PA Megan’s Law: Overview of requirements (2008) $2.00
__9.4 DNA Collection and Testing (2005) $2.00
Other Legal Information
__101.0 Barron’s Law Dictionary (2003 Edition, 591 Pages, Paperback) $17.50
__102.0 The Prison Litigation Reform Act (2002) (Chapter 13 in The Jailhouse Lawyer’s Manual 7th edition 2007) $3.00
__103.0 Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies under the PLRA (2008) by John Boston $5.00

National Lawyers Guild

132 Nassau Street, RM 922

New York, NY 10038

http://www.jailhouselaw.org/

(212) 679-2811 fax

(212) 679-5100 phone

Serves: National

Focus area/description: This Handbook is a resource for prisoners who wish to file a Section 1983 lawsuit in federal court regarding poor conditions in prison and/or abuse by prison staff. It also contains limited information about legal research and the American legal system.



The Handbook is available for free online to anyone: prisoners, lawyers, families, friends, activists and others. To download it, go to: www.jailhouselaw.org. If requesting a Handbook by mail from the National Lawyers Guild, two dollars ($2) is requested, but not necessary, to help cover postage costs. Stamps are accepted.



If you are unable to download the Handbook and would like to receive a copy via mail, please write to:



National Lawyers Guild

132 Nassau Street, RM 922, New York, NY 10038



OR



Center for Constitutional Rights

666 Broadway, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10012



Please note it may take a several weeks to deliver the Handbook due to a shortage of staff and resources. It is usually much faster to download the Handbook from this site and print it yourself.



PLEASE NOTE: This organization does not have the resources to give legal advice or representation, and will not respond to mail regarding these issues. Please send only orders or comments about the JLH itself.