U.S. Appeals Court: COST OF CONFINEMENT EXCESSIVE FINES CLAUSE.

• Position: Brief Article

Wright v. Riveland 219 F.3d 905 (9th Cir. 2000). An inmate brought a class action suit against the secretary of a state corrections department challenging a state law that authorized a 35% MENT deduction from all funds received by inmates from outside sources. The federal district court dismissed the constitutional claims but declared the law void in part to the extent that it impaired certain federal statutory rights. The appeals court affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded. The appeals court held that the 35% deduction was not a "tax" within the meaning of the Tax Injunction Act but that the inmate class had sufficiently demonstrated standing to...