Two Dane County judges have ruled that the state Department of Corrections cannot deduct more than 25 percent of inmates’ trust funds, as it has been doing to cover restitution, court surcharges and other fees.
However, a prisoner rights activist says that the state continues deducting a higher percentage of money from accounts despite the rulings.
In 2015, the state Legislature passed Act 355, defining a garnishment structure for the Department of Corrections to follow in docking inmates’ accounts.
The trust accounts hold the money that inmates earn doing prison work — between 5 cents and $1.60 an hour — or gifts deposited by family and friends. Inmates use the money to buy food, including items for special diets, and incidentals like deodorant, stamps and clothing.
As Isthmus reported in February 2017, several inmates have complained about 50 percent or more of their trust accounts being deducted by the state.
Some inmates have been fighting the deductions. Last summer, Marcus Kerby, an inmate at Fox River, filed a suit against the DOC.
On Jan. 18, Dane County Judge Shelley Gaylord ruled in Kerby’s favor, issuing an injunction that prohibited DOC from deducting more than 25 percent.
She also ruled that the state cannot deduct from money given to inmates by family or friends, writing “family and friends do not owe such money.”
However, the judge did not rule on whether the state had to return money taken inappropriately from inmates accounts — because the request for an injunction didn’t ask her to do so.
Despite the injunction, Kerby wrote the court on Jan. 25 to complain that DOC is still taking an improper amount of money from his account.
In another case, Joshua Howard, an inmate at Waupun Correctional Institution, complained that the DOC is violating his conviction judgment by deducting 50 percent of his account.
Dane County Judge Juan Colas ruled on Feb. 1 that DOC was violating the law and failing to adhere to Gaylord’s injunction.
“The DOC received an order requiring it to collect from [inmate] funds for surcharges and restitution at a rate of ‘up to 25 percent.’ The DOC, aware of the court order, instead collected at a rate of 50 percent,” Colas wrote. “This amounts to a failure to follow the law.”
On Feb. 8, the state notified the court that it will be appealing Gaylord’s injunction.
Peg Swan, a prisoners rights advocate in Richland County, says that the DOC continues deducting more than 25 percent from inmates’ accounts. Swan, who lives near the state’s maximum security prison in Boscobel, corresponds with numerous inmates.
She says they’re all telling her the same thing: “[DOC] is still deducting and they’re not giving money back. That’s what everyone is writing me.”
Tristan Cook, a spokesperson for DOC, declined to comment about the injunction, except for a statement: “The Department of Corrections is a passionate advocate for victims of crime, which includes ensuring that victims receive court-ordered restitution owed them by inmates in Department custody. The Department has long-standing statutory authority to collect funds from an inmate’s account to pay restitution and other financial obligations owed by the inmate.”
Cook deferred further questions about the case to the state Department of Justice’s Johnny Koremenos. Koremenos did not respond to several requests for comment.
