Chapter 10 – Adult Programs

An inmate library shall be maintained by each facility, reception center, and camp; and, the inmate library shall operate according to an operation schedule approved by the Warden.  The schedule shall be widely distributed to the inmate body, and posted throughout the facilities, reception centers, and camps.  The library program shall allow for maximum inmate access and participation.

There shall be a general library and at least one law library in each facility with space to provide service to all segments of the facility population.  Such areas shall contain space to accommodate State-owned books and non-print materials and to allow individual study of the available materials.  Access to each library shall take into consideration the needs of general population inmates and inmates assigned to security, segregation, and other restricted housing units.  The program shall include opportunity for independent study and research, general library services, legal library service, and circulation legal
library services.

The Director, Division of Rehabilitative Programs, shall be responsible for the inmate library program.

• Superintendent of Education.

  • The Superintendent of Education shall develop and monitor departmental inmate library policy.

• Senior Librarian.

  • The Senior Librarian shall implement the facility library program and shall report to the Principal.

• Librarian.

  • The Librarian is an entry level professional who can operate a smaller correctional library, undertake law library functions or act as a lead on or perform more complex library tasks.

• Library Technical Assistant (LTA).

  • LTAs are paraprofessionals who perform basic library services such as photocopying, orientation, copy cataloging, circulation, overdue book notifications, book repairs, library inventories, or train and direct inmate library workers in those tasks.  The Librarian and LTA may also operate small libraries under the technical direction of a Senior Librarian or Principal designee.  The LTA provides reasonable accommodations and access to assistive devices
    as needed.

On-Site Staff.

• Facility library staff (includes Senior Librarians, Librarians, and LTAs) shall provide library services and materials.

Access.

• Library services shall be scheduled to provide adequate inmate access, while maintaining institutional security and operational needs.

Collection Development.

• Library materials shall be selected and provided to meet the needs and interests of the entire inmate population.  Materials provided shall encompass the American Correctional Association’s and the American Library Association’s recommended standards and shall be augmented by reference materials necessary to meet the needs of the facility’s education programs. Suggestions and requests from inmates shall be solicited both informally by suggestion box and formally by an inmate library committee meeting with library staff on a scheduled basis.

Inmate Welfare Fund appropriations will be used to purchase:

• Publications such as: Newspaper and magazine subscriptions for library and entertainment purposes, and to supplement or support appropriation purchases.

• Fiction books, especially paperbacks, to supplement or support appropriation purchases.

Required Reference Materials-Minimum Collection Facility.

• Each institution shall maintain at least one library that is accessible to inmates that contains the following reference materials in print or electronic formats:

  • An encyclopedia purchased within the last 10 years.

  • An unabridged dictionary purchased within the last 5 years.

  • A sign language dictionary purchased within the last 10 years.

  • A world almanac purchased within the last 5 years.

  • A world atlas purchased within the last 5 years.  A road atlas shall not be included within the library collection.

  • A primary dictionary purchased within the last 5 years.

  • A visual dictionary purchased within the last 5 years.

  • A Spanish to English-English to Spanish dictionary purchased within the
    last 5 years.

Multi-cultural Material.

• The general library collection must contain a selection of ethnically diverse titles.

Literacy Material.

• The general library collection must contain titles representing high interest and low level reading material.

Education Support Materials.

• The general library collection must contain textbooks representing Career and Technical Education (CTE), academic, and reentry programs.

Life Skills Materials.

• The general library collection must contain a selection of life skills materials, including, but not limited to:

  • Anger management.

  • Emotional health and wellbeing.

  • Substance abuse and disorders.

  • Career development.

  • Family relations.

  • Material related to living successfully inside and outside of prison.

Accommodations.

• The general library collection must contain library materials that meet the needs of inmates with disabilities.

Library donations for the general library collection are encouraged at the institution level:

• Inmates as well as staff and the general public shall be allowed to donate materials to the library.

• Periodicals, hard back books, paperback books, pamphlets and non-print materials are acceptable. The covers of hard back books do not have to be stripped in order to be acceptable unless local written policy specifically addresses the issue.

• Senior Librarians shall coordinate library donations.

• Documentation of any donations is required.  CDCRCalifornia Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Form 922 is the standard form of donation authorization.

• All donated library materials shall be inspected for safety, security, appropriateness, and usefulness before being placed in the collection.

• The facility is under no obligation to accept all donations for placement in the library.  Those items deemed unsuitable shall be officially discarded.

Printed material which describes the making of any weapons, explosive, poison, destructive device, or which in the Secretary’s sole discretion depicts, portrays, or describes a sexual assault upon a correctional employee shall be excluded from publications furnished to facility inmate libraries.  Obscene material and other forms of contraband, as described in California Code of Regulations, title 15, section 3006, shall be excluded from inmate libraries.

To check out books and other library materials, inmates shall:

• Present their identification or privilege card to the Librarian.

• Sign a trust account withdrawal order before any books are checked out to them.

• Display books or other materials to correctional staff upon exiting the library.

The standard check-out period will be two weeks.  A library item can be renewed for an additional two weeks if there are no requests for the item.  Check-out of materials can be performed either manually or via a computer.  Inmates should review any item they plan to check out to ensure that there is no unnoted damage already present.

Inmates who lose or damage books or library materials shall pay for them.

Inmates shall not loan books to other inmates.

An inmate’s check-out privileges are temporarily suspended when an inmate has an overdue, damaged, or lost book until the issue has been resolved.

• Overdue Materials

  • One standardized overdue notice will be sent to the inmate no sooner than two weeks after the due date.  If the inmate does not respond within two weeks of their overdue notice, the inmate will be charged with a non-refundable fee that is the newest list price available in a reputable trade publication.  Payment of the fee does not constitute payment for the book.

• Damaged Materials

  • Damaged material will be inspected by library staff to determine if the material remains usable in its damaged state.  A note will be placed in the body of the material noting observed damage, date and the initials of the library staff making the damage determination.  If the damaged material requires repairs to continue to be usable, a non-refundable repair fee of five dollars will be charged to the inmate’s trust account and a record of the repair will be maintained under the inmate’s name.  If the damaged material is not repairable, the replacement cost will be charged to the inmate.  Payment of this fee does not allow the inmate to maintain possession of the damaged item.  Library staff will determine how to dispose of the damaged item and whether the damaged item will be repurchased for the collection.

• Lost Materials

  • Inmates who lose books or library materials shall pay for them.  Library staff will use the newest list price available in a reputable trade publication and a record of the loss will be maintained under the inmate’s name.  Payment of the non-refundable cost does not transfer ownership of the book to the inmate.

The inmate law library collection is intended to provide inmates with meaningful access to the courts.

Abuse of Law Library.

• Disciplinary action for an inmate who is found to be guilty of a serious rule violation pertaining to law library resources, facilities, or staff may include a suspension of all access to the law library for up to 90 calendar days.  This action does not preclude an inmate from pursuing legal research through the reasonable use of law library paging, beginning three calendar days after the date of suspension, and continuing until the suspension period ends.

All inmates, regardless of their classification status, shall be entitled to law library access that is sufficient to provide meaningful access to the courts.  Law library access includes use of the law library collection in print or electronic format, including remote access via kiosk, tablet, or other device, if available.  Inmates on Priority Legal User (PLU) status may receive a minimum of 4 hours per calendar week of requested access, as resources are available, and shall be given higher priority to the law library resources.  Inmates on General Legal User (GLUGeneral Legal User) status may receive a minimum of 2 hours per calendar week of law library access, as resources are available.

Operational Schedule

• Each facility head shall formulate an operational schedule for the inmate law library.  This schedule shall include:

  • Daily hours of library operation.

  • Consideration to needs of inmates assigned to day work, training, or education.

  • Consideration to needs of inmates assigned to security, segregated, and other restricted housing units.

General Population Inmates.

• All inmates in the general population shall have access to the law library collection, consistent with this section.  General population inmates who have received PLU status shall be given priority to the inmate law library collection.

Restricted Housing Unit Access.

• All inmates confined in restricted housing units shall have access to the law library, consistent with this section.  Inmates in restricted housing who have received PLU status shall be given priority for escort by correctional officers to the inmate law library collection.

Return-to-Custody and Conservation Camp Inmate Access.

• Return-to-Custody (RTCReturn To Custody) inmates who request access to law library materials shall be transferred to the nearest facility for the period of time needed to complete their legal work.  Conservation camp inmates requesting access to the law library shall be returned to their “hub” facility for the period of time needed to complete their legal research.

Inmates Identified as Disabled

• Inmates with visual or hearing impairments shall be afforded reasonable accommodations, including training and access to assistive technology, as necessary to facilitate their access to law library resources.

• Inmates in the Developmental Disability Program (DDP) shall also be afforded reasonable law library accommodations. DDP accommodations may include, but are not limited to, identification of legal research materials, and assistance in reading and scribing forms. Designated institutions shall have Library Technical Assistants (LTA) who are assigned to assist and orient DDP inmates in their use of the law and general libraries. DDP LTAs and all other library staff shall not function as paralegals, nor provide any type of legal advice, interpretation of law, opinion, or recommendation to an inmate about possible legal rights, remedies, defenses, options, or strategies.

Paging.

• When unable to access the law library, an inmate may request access to legal material through delivery of those materials to the inmate by library staff.  This process is referred to as law library paging.  An inmate shall not be limited to law library paging for access to legal materials except under extraordinary circumstances including, but not limited to, the following:

  • The inmate is directly under a prison lockdown or modified program.

  • The inmate is under restricted movement due to their medical status.

  • The inmate has been suspended from access to the law library pending investigation of a serious rule violation.

• When GLUGeneral Legal User inmates are limited to law library paging for any reason, law library staff must send the requested legal materials to their cells as soon as possible, but no later than 16 calendar days from the date of the paging request.  Law library staff must send the requested materials to PLU inmates no later than 5 scheduled working days from the date of the paging request.

Lockdown and Modified Program Access to the Law Library by Inmates.

• GLUGeneral Legal User inmates who are limited to law library paging due to a lockdown or modified program shall, whenever possible, have their law library collection access restored within 16 calendar days unless a high security risk continues to exist to prohibit law library collection access.  PLU inmates limited to law library paging due to a lockdown or modified program shall have their law library collection access restored within 5 working days unless a high security risk continues to exist to prohibit law library collection access.

Inmates who have established court deadlines may apply for PLU status to the prison law libraries.  Inmates who are granted PLU status shall receive higher priority to prison law library resources than other inmates.  All inmates who are not on PLU status are on GLUGeneral Legal User status, unless otherwise restricted as set forth in Department Operations Manual (DOMDepartment Operations Manual) section 101120.10.

An established court deadline may be either a court imposed deadline for an active case or a deadline that is established by a statute or court order.  Inmates who apply for PLU status based on a court imposed deadline must show documentation from the court to verify that deadline.

An inmate who is represented by an attorney for a case shall not be eligible for PLU status for any established court deadline pertaining to that case.  An inmate with attorney representation for the established court deadline shall be entitled to GLUGeneral Legal User status only.

Inmates shall complete and sign a CDCRCalifornia Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Form 2171, Priority Legal User (PLU) Request and Declaration, to apply for PLU status.  Except under extraordinary circumstances, law library staff shall have seven calendar days after receipt of the completed and signed CDCRCalifornia Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Form 2171 to process an inmate’s application.  Staff members who disapprove an inmate’s application shall provide the reasons for their disapproval on the form and shall provide a copy of that document to the inmate.

An inmate who is found to have provided false information on their application for PLU status shall be guilty of an administrative rule violation and shall not be able to obtain PLU status based on that application.

An inmate’s PLU status shall begin no earlier than 30 calendar days before the established court deadline unless the inmate can demonstrate need for a longer period of PLU status based on extraordinary circumstances beyond the inmate’s control.

PLU status is intended to assist inmates to do legal work in a quiet law library setting.  An inmate on PLU status who, while in the law library, is observed by staff to act in an unreasonably disruptive manner or to engage in non-legal work, shall be removed from the PLU list and shall be dismissed from the library for that day.  Inmates who are removed from the PLU list for these reasons shall be ineligible to reapply for PLU status for 30 calendar days, but may continue to use the law library on GLUGeneral Legal User status.

Inmates may not trade, transfer, or delegate their PLU status to other inmates.  An inmate who assists another inmate in the preparation of legal documents may not use the PLU status of the inmate being assisted.

Each institution shall maintain at least one law library collection for the use of inmates.  Except for items that are no longer published, the law library collection shall include, but shall not be limited to the following legal materials, latest edition or update, or their equivalent from other publishers:

Codes.

• Deering’s California Codes Annotated.

• Michie, United States Code Service.

Reporters.

• Michie, California Official Reports.

• Matthew Bender, California Criminal Defense Practice.

• All Federal Appeals Court Cases.

• All Federal District Court Cases.

• All United States Supreme Court Cases.

Shepards.

• United States Citations.

• Federal Citations.

• California Citations.

Secondary Sources.

• A recognized law dictionary, such as Black’s or Ballentine’s.

• Matthew Bender, California Evidence Courtroom Manual.

• Matthew Bender, California Forms of Pleading and Practice.

• The Daily Journal.

• Matthew Bender, California Criminal Discovery.

• Matthew Bender, Standard California Codes: Rules of Court.

• Michie, Federal Habeas Corpus Practice and Procedure.

• California Code of Regulations.

• California Family Law Litigation Guide.

• California Family Law Practice and Procedure.

• Civil Rights Actions.

• Cotchett, California Courtroom Evidence.

• California Juvenile Courts Practice and Procedure.

• California Superior Court Local Rules.

• Judicial Council of California Civil and Criminal Jury Instructions.

• Matthew Bender, Moore’s Federal Practice.

• Anderson, Constitutional Rights of Prisoners.

Electronic Collection.

An institution may have as many copies of the Law Library Electronic Delivery System (LLEDS) of legal titles placed in their general population libraries as needed.  Each computer loaded with a copy must be licensed.

Print Law Library

• Law books not listed in DOMDepartment Operations Manual section 101120.11, but currently existing at various facilities, may be retained in facility law libraries if they are not out of date, but need not be replaced in case of loss, theft, or mutilation.

Electronic Formats

• Electronic collections shall be kept current.  A continuing subscription to electronic law library material shall be maintained to ensure accuracy.

• Desktop LLEDS computers shall be updated by institutions’ information systems staff within 10 business days of receipt.  Touch screen kiosks shall be updated by local library staff within 10 business days of receipt.

Purchasing procedures for replacement of lost or damaged legal materials, updating the collections, obtaining supplements, revisions, and subscriptions include:

• Purchases of the annual subscriptions required to keep each inmate law library collection current, and materials to replace items lost or damaged shall be made by headquarters procurement staff.  Such purchases are to be made from inmate law library funds, not regular library funds.

• Purchases of mandated law materials lost, damaged, stolen, or missing from the facility law library shall be coordinated by headquarters library staff.  The Senior Librarian or designated library staff shall complete an annual inventory of the inmate law library and report to the Principal Librarian any lost, stolen, or missing print or electronic items or items damaged beyond use.

• Purchases of law books and other legal materials not on the required list shall be the responsibility of the facility.

As determined by the Superintendent of Education or their designee, the following supplemental legal materials or their equivalent from other publishers in electronic format, except for items that are no longer published, shall be available by means of the Law Library Electronic Delivery System (LLEDS):

• California Jurisprudence (latest edition).

Function

• The function of the circulating law library shall be to transfer digital and electronic materials to facility law libraries for the temporary use of the inmates in those facilities.

Method.

• No inmate may request law library materials directly from the circulating law library.  All requests must be processed through the library staff member designated to request materials from the circulating law library.

• Upon receiving a request from an inmate for a particular citation from the circulating law library, a facility Librarian shall immediately order that material from the Librarian of the circulation law library.  The Librarian of the circulating law library shall dispatch the citation to the requesting facility Librarian immediately upon receipt of the request, or notify the requesting Librarian that the requested item is unavailable.  When the material is received at the facility library, the Librarian shall immediately notify the requesting inmate.

• No inmate shall request more than five citations from the circulating law library during any one-week period.

• The circulating law library shall be operated in such a manner as to ensure all inmates have maximum access to the citations contained in said library.

• CDCRCalifornia Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation may contract the actual operation of the circulating law library to another agency providing that the required standards of service are retained.

Legal duplication services may be provided to inmates for the purposes of initiating or maintaining a court action.  The printed forms required by state and federal courts shall be made available to inmates.  An inmate shall be required to pay for the duplication of printed forms and other written or typed materials, and for any special paper and envelopes required for mailing to the courts so long as the inmate has more than $1.00 in their trust account or the inmate has attorney representation for the court action.  An inmate who is indigent, and is without attorney representation for the court action, shall receive legal duplicating services without charge.

A legal document to be duplicated for any inmate, including all exhibits and attachments, shall be limited to the maximum number of pages needed for the filing, not to exceed 50 pages in total length.  Inmates requesting copy services must clearly identify the pages to be copied.  Requests by an inmate to duplicate a legal document exceeding 50 pages in length shall be granted when accompanied by a reasonable written explanation of the need.  All inmate requests for duplication services must comply with applicable regulations and with DOMDepartment Operations Manual chapter 1, article 18, sections 14010.21 through 14010.21.4.

All documents submitted for copying must be complete and ready for mailing.

Copies of law book pages, law review articles, and other documents listed in DOMDepartment Operations Manual section 14010.21.3 shall not be duplicated without charge to the inmate.

A Quarterly Library Operations Report shall be completed and submitted no later than the fifteenth day of the first month of each quarter for the preceding quarter, and shall be sent to the Principal Librarian.

At the end of the fiscal year, an annual report shall be completed and submitted no later than the last working day of the first month in the new fiscal year.  The Annual Report should include a brief narrative, no longer than one page, describing the achievements and challenges of the library program during the preceding year.

The Director, Division of Rehabilitative Programs shall be responsible for ensuring that the contents of this Article are kept current and accurate.