Sullivan County settles inmate mail lawsuit

By Caleb Perhne, Journalist Intern, cperhne@wcyb.com

POSTED: 4:41 PM Jul 18 2016

SULLIVAN COUNTY, Tenn.

Sullivan County officials have decided to settle a lawsuit involving prisoners and their right to receive mail. Prison Legal News, an organization that sends mail to inmates, filed the suit a few years ago.

The lawsuit challenged a former policy that restricted inmate mail to only postcards, saying it violated prisoners' rights. That policy was intended to cut down on attempts to use inmate mail to smuggle drugs into the jail.

The policy was lifted around the time the lawsuit was filed.

"Hopefully, we've resolved all the concerns,” County Attorney Dan Street said. “Now, it's just a question of trying to finish it off and put it behind us."

The county will pay $50,000 to settle the suit.