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REGISTER STAFF WRITER
February 12, 2008
Inmates in Iowa's jails and prisons would be able to file civil rights complaints with the state under a proposal being considered by lawmakers.
Prisoners who allege discrimination on such bases as race or gender currently must file complaints with federal officials. Some say that is a cumbersome process that can take years to resolve complaints.
The Iowa attorney general's office issued an opinion roughly 25 years ago that said state civil rights protection processes do not apply to people who are behind bars.
House Study Bill 506 would reverse that stance and specify that inmates could launch investigative processes within the Iowa Civil Rights Commission.
Opponents say the proposal would cost taxpayers millions of dollars a year by opening the state up to a host of additional liabilities and causing delays in processing thousands of civil rights complaints.
Advocates note that civil rights are not limited to law-abiding citizens.
"We just feel it's good to have an independent, outside entity that understands discrimination issues," said Deputy Ombudsman Ruth Cooperrider, whose office is behind the proposal.
The Office of Citizens' Aide/Ombudsman receives roughly 5,000 complaints or inquiries a year. Of those, roughly 25 percent are from prison inmates, Cooperrider said. Her office looks into the prisoner complaints and makes recommendations to state facilities when necessary. However, the office does not have enforcement authority and cannot require changes.
Ralph Rosenberg, the head of the Iowa Civil Rights Commission, told lawmakers Monday that the proposal would require at least 10 additional workers and cost the state at least $900,000 more a year just for his department. The commission hasn't taken an official position on the proposal, but Rosenberg spoke against it Monday.
Rep. Clel Baudler, a Greenfield Republican and member of a House subcommittee considering the bill, said he believes the idea is a way for the ombudsman's office to transfer work to another department.
"This is a power grab by one state agency trying to force another state agency into a position it can't afford," Baudler said.
Des Moines attorney Roxanne Conlin has sued the state in the past year for refusing to accept prisoner complaints through the Iowa Civil Rights Commission. Conlin represents inmate Melissa Renda, who alleges she was sexually harassed by Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility staff while working as a clerk at the prison. Conlin has filed at least four lawsuits related to the case. Much of the legal action could have been averted if the Iowa Civil Rights Commission would investigate, she said.
Conlin noted that other states have already determined that inmates are protected by their civil rights laws.
The Vermont Supreme Court in 2006, for example, determined that the state's fair housing and public accommodations law applies to state correctional facilities.
House Study Bill 506 is in the early stages of consideration by the Judiciary Committee. Lawmakers said they were uncertain whether the proposal would gain approval this year.
Reporter Jason Clayworth can be reached at (515) 699-7058 or
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Source: http://www.altoonaherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080212/NEWS10/802120388
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