Constitutional Rights for Inmates in the United States of America

Constitutional Rights for Inmates
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Constitutional Rights for Inmates
While the Constitution guarantees many rights to every citizen, prisoners do not enjoy all of them. For instance, they are protected against unlawful search and seizure but not against cruel and unusual punishment or extended detention without trial. The U.S. Supreme Court has recognized certain fundamental constitutional rights for inmates (Nordin et al., 2018). For example, they cannot be disciplined for refusing to participate in prison programs that violate their faith (e.g., by requiring them to participate in Buddhist meditation) or use jailhouse lawyers to file lawsuits to establish legal complaint procedures for inmates. Inmates have also been granted some liberty rights, such as those to marry, send and receive mail from the outside world, and practice their religion (Nordin et al., 2018). Finally, some inmates have been given a constitutional right to medical treatment.
The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures. However, the Supreme Court has developed a "prisoner's exception" to this general rule. In practice, this exception allows prison officials to conduct a full body cavity search on every prisoner if there is a reasonable suspicion that he or she is carrying a weapon or other contraband (Clancy, 2017).
In Robinson v. California, 370 U.S. 660 (1962), the Court held that due process protections apply only against violations of constitutional rights, not against all violations of state law. The Court explained that under the "state action" doctrine, state prison officials are not liable for failing to comply with the Fourth Amendment. It added that due process requirements are determined by what would be constitutional in a "non-jail setting."
The Supreme Court has recognized prisoners' rights to religious liberty in several cases. For example, they have ruled that inmates might not be required to participate in religious rituals at the prison chapel (in Gonzales v. Williams, 1904). They have also allowed inmates to continue praying during recreation periods (in "McCreary v. Washington"). In some cases, however, the Supreme Court has limited inmates' rights to religious expression when it conflicts with offici...