Prisoners May Have Newspaper Bylines

WASHINGTON (CN) - Jailhouse writers can be published with bylines, according to new rules adopted by the Bureau of Prisons.

The bureau issued the same rule on an interim basis in 2010, after a Federal Court judge in Colorado found that rules preventing prisoners from publishing under bylines violated their First Amendment freedom.

The federal judge declined to address whether inmates may act as reporters, with the implication that they would be paid, as the issue was not in question. However, unauthorized conducting of a business while incarcerated is not allowed, the court noted.

Although the case was decided in 2007, appeals and the rule-making process delayed implementation until now. The new rule is effective May 3.

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