Stateville Newsletter - House Bill HR0763

[Morrigan68]

This was just filed with the Clerk by Rep. Arthur Turner on March 25th -
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HR0763 LRB093 21635 HSS 49167 r

1 HOUSE RESOLUTION


2 WHEREAS, There are few positive programs for inmates at
3 Stateville Prison, a maximum-security prison with about 2,700
4 inmates; and

5 WHEREAS, Stateville Speaks is a newspaper written entirely
6 by inmates and printed by voluntary donations at no cost to the
7 Department of Corrections; and

8 WHEREAS, Stateville Speaks provides inmates an opportunity
9 for self-expression and promotes a safe environment at
10 Stateville Prison; therefore, be it

11 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
12 NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
13 strongly urge the Department of Corrections to allow inmates at
14 Stateville Prison to publish a quarterly newspaper, with each
15 issue being approved by the Department of Corrections before
16 distribution; and be it further

17 RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be presented to
18 the Department of Corrections.
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I'll let you know if I hear anything else, but it's something to keep an eye on.

Kelly

[Patty]

Interesting, Kelly, thanks for sharing the info...

Patty

[Roger's Girl]

That is great.

[Morrigan68]

Not a problem Patty. Like I said, I'll keep my eye on it for all of you with loved ones in Stateville. If it's passed, it's a step in the right direction. A small step, but a small step for prisoner rights is better than nothing at all!

I was looking at some of the proposed bills by this Arthur Turner, and from what I can tell, he seems to be really pro-inmate. It wouldn't hurt to keep his name in mind for other issues.

I even saw a proposed bill to abolish the death penalty in Illinois, and it seems like a lot of representatives have joined the bandwagon on this one. Wouldn't that be great! I'll let you know how that is coming too.

Kelly

[jimsenglishgeek]

Kelly,

Where did you find that bill?

jims...

[Morrigan68]

Sorry jims, I haven't been around in a couple days and didn't see your post.

It's on the Illinois Legislature website. Here's the link to the actual Bill:

http://www.legis.state.il.us/legisla...34&SessionID=3

Kelly

[Morrigan68]

Jims -

I just realized you may have been talking about the death penalty one. That can be found at:

http://www.legis.state.il.us/legisla...ID=3&LegID=451

Kelly

[Morrigan68]

This was sent to me by Jus' Mom -

Friday :: March 26, 2004

Prison Rejects Inmate Newspaper How stupid and counter-productive can prison officials be? In Illinois, they come close to being idiots:

Stateville Correctional Center in Joliet will not allow its prisoners to read a 16-page newspaper written by its own inmates. Officials decided not to distribute "Stateville Speaks" because the maximum-security prison has other priorities, including running the facility that houses more than 2,500 prisoners, Illinois Department of Corrections spokesman Sergio Molina said.


The idea for the newspaper, published in newsletter form, came from an essay contest organized last summer by convicted murderer Renaldo Hudson. After 41 inmates at six of the state's prisons submitted entries, Hudson suggested a newspaper, anti-death penalty activist Bill Ryan said. Ryan secured computers, instructors and donations, but prison officials cited safety concerns and refused to allow the newspaper to be published at the prison.


Ryan self-published the first issue, which includes poems and essays about the dangers of drug use, surviving in prison and the hopelessness of being sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.