Smith v. Al-Amin

This case, brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, arose from multiple instances in which prison officials opened legal mail addressed to Jamil Al-Amin from his attorney and wife, Karima Al-Amin, outside his presence. The mail was labeled “Legal Mail” and identified Ms. Al-Amin’s as an “Attorney at Law,” as prison regulations governing the handling of legal mail require. Even after Mr. Al-Amin filed grievances, which led to rulings in his favor, additional letters were opened outside his presence. He then filed suit, alleging constitutional violations based on the repeated opening and reading of his legal mail outside his presence and alleging that the officials had engaged in retaliatory actions (including continuing to open and read his legal mail) as a result of his filing of grievances.

After the lower courts agreed that he had stated a claim and that the officials lacked qualified immunity from suit, the officials filed a cert petition, asking the Supreme Court to consider whether allegations that prison officials repeatedly opened incoming mail from an inmate’s attorney outside of his presence, in violation of the prison’s own regulations and without a legitimate penological purpose, state a claim for violation of the inmate’s free speech rights, and whether the law clearly established an inmate’s right not to have attorney mail opened outside his presence without a legitimate penological purpose. Public Citizen assisted Mr. Al-Amin’s counsel with the brief in opposition to the petition, and the Supreme Court denied the petition.