The library at the Cook County Correctional Complex is described by its' library assistant with special attention given to its' library service. (AP)

The successful functioning of a democratic form of government depends on a number of very basic principles. The issue confronted at this conference, the provision of legal research materials to prisoners, is tied very closely to two of these principles: first, that no individual should be without recourse to the courts and to the law; and second,…

Part 1 of this publication consists of a listing, by state, of law libraries which will respond to requests for legal information from prisoners. Services may include photocopies of needed statutes, cases, or other material; books on loan; and/or reference work. Citations include the name and address of the library, types of requests it will…

Librarians can play a vital role as a profession, by making sure that prisoners have the legal tools they need in order to help themselves, and that they are not denied access to such tools by a bevy of restrictions. (9 references) (Author/NH)

In order to discern states' compliance with court mandates to provide prisoners with adequate legal counsel or access to legal reference materials, a questionnaire was administered to state consultants in 1972 and updated and expanded by later contacts with institutional consultants. Findings indicated that states are trying to comply with…

The availability of law libraries to inmates is a logical extension of a prisoner's right to "access to the courts." This report discusses the need for prison law libraries for indigent prisoners and refers to sources for determining what law books should be included in these libraries. Recommended collections for prison law libraries is attached…

This paper discusses the most common forms of international cooperation between legislative libraries from the perspective of Eastern European legislative libraries. The focus is on experience sharing and on the present place of these libraries in expanded European and world-wide communities, as is represented by the European Centre for…

Recent Federal Court decisions have defined a prisoner's right to access to legal materials as an extension of his right of access to the courts. Correction administrators, recognizing the need for improvement of existing services, but unfamiliar with techniques and material requirements, have asked for help in meeting the new obligation. These…

Information is given concerning the library programs and services available to inmates of adult and juvenile correctional institutions under state administration in each of the 50 states. Descriptions include information on library collections, staffing, funding, legal library services, and state library assistance programs. Data were compiled…

Theories behind the presence and absence of libraries in correctional institutions can be deduced from information on their history, their proponents, and their budgets. Theories range from punitive to religious, humanitarian, educational and legalistic. The therapeutic theory of library access for inmates would further advance library service,…