Legal intake has been a practice of the ACLU of Wisconsin for as long as anyone can remember. This practice of receiving reports from individuals, family members, and others impacted by the carceral system is a key part of the work of the affiliate’s legal team, and over the years has contributed to the work that the affiliate has done in relation to improving prison conditions across the state.
I sat down with Nour Kalbouneh, ACLU of Wisconsin paralegal, to learn more about the affiliate’s legal mail intake process and to talk about the impacts of legal mail on those on the inside of our state’s carceral system.
Tina: Tell me about the legal mail intake process here at the ACLU of Wisconsin?
Nour: People who are incarcerated here in Wisconsin send us letters about issues they are having and the rights that are potentially being violated. I read the letters, put the information into the legal database, coding it based on the issues being presented, and then send a response back to the individual with resources based on their situation. Our legal department can’t represent everyone that requests help – last year we received over 3,000 requests via voicemails, email, and mail – so we make sure that everyone receives some kind of pertinent information, lists of civil rights attorneys, and other resources. We’ve recently moved towards an online intake process and we anticipate that the number of intakes will increase with this new system.
Tina: So information about all of these requests get put into a database. How is this information used?
Nour: Because we are coding the information based on location, issues raised, etc., we can run a variety of reports that will help us to identify trends, whether issues are institutional or individual, or system wide. This allows our legal team to determine if there are opportunities for impact litigation to create systemic change, or non-litigation tactics such as Open Records Requests, or something as simple as providing a new resource to address an emerging concern that may serve as a deterrent for issues to escalate. This information can also be used to cross reference with community partners who may be hearing specific issues and allow us to partner with them and support them.
Tina: What is the process like when the ACLU of Wisconsin sends mail to someone on the inside?
Nour: There are a lot of rules based on what you are allowed to send in to someone. Currently, the actual physical mail is never received by the individual – it currently is photocopied offsite and the copy is sent to the individual, and often it isn’t copied correctly, and by the time it is received, the original has often been discarded. People also don’t realize that there are limitations on sending items such as books, writing materials, and stamps. Most of these items have to be purchased directly from the commissary, and often at prices more expensive than normal.
Legal mail is sent directly to the specific institution. Before the policy change, legal mail wasn’t allowed to be photocopied or read, just opened and given to the individual. Now, it goes through a photocopying process which has potential for breaking attorney/client privilege, and there are certain documents where having the originals is necessary.
Tina: In your experience, what are some of the other ways that receiving physical mail can impact incarcerated people?
Nour: Any mail that is sent to individuals inside institutions are important and can play a significant part in harm reduction for those within the carceral system. Besides the impact on mental health, receiving mail, especially legal mail, can be an indication that an individual has people who care about them, who are paying attention to their well-being, and would notice if something happened to them. There is a value to individuals within institutions reporting on issues that they are experiencing – institutions often underestimate the value of this mail, but it really can make a difference.
Thank you Nour for your time and for the important work that you and the rest of the legal team does to protect the civil rights and liberties of those who are impacted by the carceral system.
