AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine Department of Corrections officials did not attend a public hearing on proposed new rules governing discipline policy on Monday in Augusta. They say they have been advised by the attorney general's office not to answer questions while the rulemaking process is underway.
Civil liberties groups and advocates say the rules are unconstitutional and will isolate prisoners and exacerbate discipline problems.
The DOC commissioner says he values the input and may rework the final rules.
Until now, Corrections Commissioner Dr. Joseph Fitzpatrick has declined to say anything about the controversial rules that propose to limit prisoners' communication with the media and with pen pals. The proposal would also stiffen penalties for conduct such as uncourteous behavior, deception and hoarding. Critics say some of these rules are vague and subjective.
Reached by cellphone late Monday, Fitzpatrick says he's listening and paying attention.
"As I sit down to review a final product, I'm going to look at all of that feedback and I'm going to look at where we fit in terms of what's reasonable," he says. "And I'm really going to try to strike that middle ground. It's not just smoke and mirrors for me. It's not a paper and pencil process. This really is an important process."
Fitzpatrick says he's glad that advocacy groups, the media and others in the community are raising awareness about the disciplinary process and weighing in on the potential changes.
"If people weren't giving us feedback then we wouldn't have the insights, of not just the general public but the advocates and some of the folks who watch the national trends," he says.
The ACLU of Maine and others have asked the DOC to consider overhauling the rules. Fitzpatrick says he will take that under consideration. The last thing he wants to do, he says, is cut off the connection between people who are incarcerated and their advocates or the media.
