Civil liberties union sues, saying New Hampshire prison ban on cards and drawings is unlawful
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Civil liberties lawyers say the New Hampshire Department of Corrections' ban on greeting cards and handmade drawings hurts inmates and their families and is unconstitutional.
The American Civil Liberties Union-New Hampshire sued the department last week on behalf of an inmate whose 3-year-old son sent a Thanksgiving card that included drawings and the handwritten message: "I (heart) U DADDY."
Prison officials in May banned such cards because they said some inmates were getting the drug suboxone smuggled in via heavy card-stock paper or hidden by layered crayon drawings. Suboxone comes in thin strips.
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The ACLU says the ban violates free speech and needlessly blocks innocent communications between inmates and their families.
A corrections department spokesman says the ban is needed to cut down on drug smuggling.