how to become a jailhouse lawyer

by Ahmed Hauck 5 min read

“If you’re a free citizen, you got to go to law school, pass the bar if you wanna pretend to be a lawyer. Except if you’re in prison. Jailhouse lawyers usually begin by investigating their own cases. That’s usually how most jailhouse lawyers cut their teeth.

Full Answer

Do you need a license to be a jailhouse lawyer?

Aug 15, 2015 · They receive 40 hours of training each year and must prove their chops on a standardized adult education exam to earn the coveted job. Michigan and Florida have similar programs. What Everyone Gets...

What do you need to know about a jailhouse lawyer’s manual?

After tracing the historical roots of jailhouse lawyering, this study identifies factors in an inmate's becoming a jailhouse lawyer. A jailhouse lawyer typically emerges as an inmate, finding his representation through legal aid to be lacking, uses the jail or prison law library to help meet his own legal needs. The expertise gained from this endeavor is subsequently used to help other …

What is a jailhouse lawyer called?

Feb 07, 2021 · A Jailhouse Lawyer’s Manual The 12th Edition of A Jailhouse Lawyer’s Manual is here! Click here to view, download, and print the 12th Edition. NEW: You can now order the JLM online! For incarcerated people and their family members: Please read instructions about ordering online here. COVID-19 Updates (updated February 7, 2021):

Can you be a lawyer in prison?

Aug 03, 2021 · 08:04. Use Up/Down Arrow keys to increase or decrease volume. Download. “Of Jailhouse Lawyers”. “Of Jailhouse Lawyers.”. To be a jailhouse lawyer is to be, above all, a prisoner, and as such, among the most despised of men and women in the nation. “Jailhouse lawyer” was similarly a term of derision, a joke, a mockery until, that is, they began to win.

image

Abstract

Jailhouse lawyering is a form of resistance against the prison industrial complex that seeks to silence and disappear prisoners. This Essay describes the author’s acts of resistance, or growth as a jailhouse lawyer, from arrest to imprisonment using critical race theory and abolition theory.

Introduction

My first act of resistance was doing legal work in county jail. Following my conviction, I made my first public political statement about the legal system on my way to prison. I set forth my political views at my sentencing hearing. The transcript of that speech is forty pages long.

I. My Case

I started my legal erudition in the county jail. Accused of fifteen unrelated crimes in different jurisdictions and various cases between 1994 and 1996, I understood immediately that it was less about what authorities believed I might have done and more about an understood process known in the streets and by convicts as “clearing the books.” [35]

II. Prison

After three trials, I found myself imprisoned inside the level-four, maximum security California State Prison, Sacramento, the infamous “New Folsom.” And I remained clueless on many details of the law.

III. Political Prisoner

After a short time, many jailhouse lawyers, including myself, come to understand that the very nature of our decades-long incarceration makes us political prisoners.

IV. My Civil Case

The culmination of my legal erudition manifested itself in 2011 when I transferred to San Quentin State Prison from Folsom State Prison as part of Assembly Bill 109, “Realignment,” which is California’s attempt to reduce its prison population.

Conclusion

My desire was never to become a jailhouse lawyer, and much less do I consider myself an efficient one. Out of necessity, litigation became practical to learn how to defend myself and my rights in prison, especially against erroneous write-ups.

Which amendment protects pretrial detainees?

239, 244 (1983), the Supreme Court held that pretrial detainees have due process rights that are “at least as great” as the Eighth Amendment protections available to prisoners. Other courts have held that pretrial detainees should have more protection than convicted prisoners.

What is preliminary injunction?

It is also a federal crime for state actors (the prison officials) to threaten or assault witnesses in federal litigation. 18 U.S.C. § 1512 (a)(2).

What is deliberate indifference?

The standard for “deliberate indifference” in medical care cases is the same two-part standard (objective and subjective) used in cases challenging conditions of confinement in prison, explained in Part 2 of this section.

What is a 1983 suit?

For prisoners in State prison, this type of lawsuit is known as a “Section 1983” suit. It takes its name from Section 1983 of Title 42 of the United States Code. The U.S. Congress passed Section 1983 to allow people to sue in federal court when a state or local official violates their federal rights.

Where did Lester go to college?

According to a December 17, 2017 news report, Lester enrolled in Georgia Highlands College in Rome, Georgia with the encouragement of his family, and plans to start a pre-law track to become an attorney. “I have first-hand experience and knowledge that college can really help a person succeed,” he stated.

What was Brandon Sample's success story?

During a dozen years in federal prison, Sample made a name for himself in the legal arena – spearheading countless habeas corpus petitions for fellow prisoners, successfully suing the federal Bureau of Prisons over Freedom of Information Act requests and religious rights issues, serving as a contributing writer for Prison Legal News and authoring The Habeas Citebook: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel.

Who is Neal Wiesner?

Another former New York prisoner, Neal Wiesner, who served time for attempted murder and drug offenses, attended CUNY Law School and passed the bar exam in 1994, but was not admitted to practice in New York state courts until 2012, based on character and fitness grounds.

Who was James Hamm?

James Hamm. Former Arizona state prisoner James J. Hamm, J.D. also ran into problems with being admitted to the bar after obtaining his law degree. Hamm served 17½ years in prison on a 25-to-life sentence for murder before his sentence was commuted in 1989. He was paroled three years later.

image

Abstract

  • Jailhouse lawyering is a form of resistance against the prison industrial complex that seeks to silence and disappear prisoners. This Essay describes the author’s acts of resistance, or growth as a jailhouse lawyer, from arrest to imprisonment using critical race theory and abolition theory. While it tells one person’s stories, it is both shaped by...
See more on uclalawreview.org

Introduction

  • My first act of resistance was doing legal work in county jail. Following my conviction, I made my first public political statement about the legal system on my way to prison. I set forth my political views at my sentencing hearing. The transcript of that speech is forty pages long. “I was in trouble when was I was born Black.” I quoted the words of my Uncle Jimmy Lee Davis, made more than …
See more on uclalawreview.org

I. My Case

  • I started my legal erudition in the county jail. Accused of fifteen unrelated crimes in different jurisdictions and various cases between 1994 and 1996, I understood immediately that it was less about what authorities believed I might have done and more about an understood process known in the streets and by convicts as “clearing the books.” One of my two private attorneys (now Ala…
See more on uclalawreview.org

II. Prison

  • After three trials, I found myself imprisoned inside the level-four, maximum security California State Prison, Sacramento, the infamous “New Folsom.” And I remained clueless on many details of the law. In a large way, reading books and extracting notes from them helped to solve some of my problems. I read books on philosophy, religion, street life, biographies, revolution, books writt…
See more on uclalawreview.org

III. Political Prisoner

  • After a short time, many jailhouse lawyers, including myself, come to understand that the very nature of our decades-long incarceration makes us political prisoners. The law, on the surface, substitutes the term with the more politically-neutral phrase “crime and punishment.” But it is the bulwark of tough-on-crime politics such as the war on drugs, sex offenders, repeat offenders, th…
See more on uclalawreview.org

IV. My Civil Case

  • The culmination of my legal erudition manifested itself in 2011 when I transferred to San Quentin State Prison from Folsom State Prison as part of Assembly Bill 109, “Realignment,” which is California’s attempt to reduce its prison population. It was then that my notes, quotes, research, and personal and political writings, identified as my intellectual property and compiled during ye…
See more on uclalawreview.org

Conclusion

  • My desire was never to become a jailhouse lawyer, and much less do I consider myself an efficient one. Out of necessity, litigation became practical to learn how to defend myself and my rights in prison, especially against erroneous write-ups.As a journalist, writer, and part time litigant, I cannot stand idly by and not respond in some measure to the injustice that surrounds …
See more on uclalawreview.org