The Texas Lawbook: Lawsuit Alleges North Texas Jail’s Book, Magazine Bans Violate Free Speech, Due Process Rights

O’Melveny is representing a Florida-based advocacy group alongside the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law’s First Amendment Clinic in a lawsuit alleging that Grayson Jail in North Texas is violating the organization’s rights under the First and Fourteenth amendments by rejecting packages of books and magazines mailed to inmates. O’Melveny’s Don Olmos told the publication that the judge requested additional clarification from the defendants because, “the record is murky on how often inmates can access the reading materials,” and the length of time items are actually accessible on electronic devices. “The advocacy group also argued that the jail policy is ambiguous on how a publisher can appeal a rejection, prompting the judge to ask pointed questions about the policy and how it is applied, O’Melveny partner Timothy S. Durst said. The judge asked defendants to submit a subsequent filing to answer his questions about their policies, Durst added.” Human Rights Defense Center is represented by Timothy S. Durst, Don Olmos, Frances Mackay, and Brandon Duke of O’Melveny & Myers LLP.

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