Published on: Monday, August 14, 2023
Detainee at Polk County, Fla. jail sues officials for, among other things, scanning his legal mail into a computer system. Eleventh Circuit: The First Amendment requires opening legal mail in the detainee's presence and checking only for contraband. That doesn't include scanning it and saving it on a computer that jail officials can access. The jail's mail-scanning policy "sufficiently chills, inhibits, or interferes with" an inmate's ability to speak openly with his attorney and infringes his right to free speech. Case undismissed!
The case is Christmas v. Nabors, No. 21-14230, (11th Cir. Aug. 8, 2023).