Ford v. Schmidt, 77-1516
| Decision Date | 14 April 1978 |
| Docket Number | No. 77-1516,77-1516 |
| Citation | 577 F.2d 408 |
| Parties | 3 Fed. R. Evid. Serv. 127 Jesse James FORD, III and Marvin Louis Madden, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Wilbur J. SCHMIDT, Secretary of State of Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services, et al., Defendants-Appellees. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit |
Darryl S. Bell, Milwaukee, Wis., for plaintiffs-appellants.
James H. Petersen, Asst. Atty. Gen., Madison, Wis., for defendants-appellees.
Before CUMMINGS and WOOD, Circuit Judges, and GRANT, Senior District Judge. **
The appellants in this appeal, Jesse Ford and Marvin Madden, are both inmates at the Wisconsin State Prison in Waupun, Wisconsin. On 3 April 1973 Madden wished to send by mail certain legal papers he had prepared in a separate lawsuit. In general, mail at the Wisconsin State Prison is sent by the inmates to a mail room with an inmate stamp coupon affixed. These coupons can be purchased on the first and third Monday of each month and in this case the first Monday of April, 1973, was April 2nd. Madden had two stamp coupons but they had previously been addressed to others and he was under the belief that for this reason those coupons could not be used. As a result, Madden gave the legal papers to Ford, a friend of his, so that Ford would put one of his stamp coupons on the envelope and forward it to the mail room.
In the mail room, prison personnel noted that Ford's stamp coupon was being used to post Madden's mail and since possession of another inmate's property is a violation of the "no-passing" rule, 1 the material was returned to Ford. By 5 April 1973 Madden had received the papers back but, for some unexplained reason, he did not again mail the pleadings until 11 April 1973.
The appellants filed suit in the court below, with jurisdiction predicated upon 28 U.S.C. § 1343(3), to recover monetary and injunctive relief for claims asserted to arise under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. On 7 January 1977 a trial was held and at the close of the appellants' case, the District Court granted appellees' motion to dismiss for failure to establish the denial of any constitutional rights.
Appellants first assert that the mail policy in effect on 3 April 1973 unreasonably interfered with Madden's access to the courts. In analyzing a claim of denial of access to the courts, as the District Court noted, it must be recognized that due process of law requires no more than reasonable access to the courts. Knell v. Bensinger, 489 F.2d 1014 (7th Cir. 1973). Here, it is beyond dispute that Madden's pleadings were returned because they were accompanied by Ford's stamp coupon. Thus, it is not entirely clear how Madden can claim that the mail policy interfered with his access to the courts since the reason for the return was the "no-passing" rule and not the mail policy.
In any event, under the mail policy all inmates with stamp coupons could send mail when desired. Inmates without stamp coupons and without means to purchase stamp coupons could attach an inmate order form so that the mail would still be mailed. Even inmates without stamp coupons but with the means to purchase stamp coupons could send their mail if it was of an emergency nature. The above formula is completely consistent with reasonable access to the courts. The inmate can send his mail subject only to compliance with the rules and regulations of the institution. Furthermore, requiring inmates, who have the funds to purchase stamp coupons, to account for their failure to have planned ahead, or for the emergency which prompts their need for stamps, has a rational relationship to the prison's teaching responsibility and to orderly maintenance of the institution. Accordingly, the District Court ruling that the mail policy did not deny reasonable access to the courts was correct.
The appellants next challenge the "no-passing" rule on the ground, that they retain property interests, even after conviction, which may only be curtailed by the state if a showing is made that the regulation concerned is justified by legitimate interests of penal administration. Appellants assert that the "no-passing" rule is far broader than any property control regulation need be and therefore amounts to a denial of their...
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