[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4335 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4335

  To provide for the redress of prison abuses, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 16, 2009

Mr. Scott of Virginia introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide for the redress of prison abuses, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Prison Abuse Remedies Act of 2009''.

SEC. 2. SHOWING OF PHYSICAL INJURY NOT MANDATORY FOR CLAIMS.

    (a) Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act.--Section 7 of 
the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e) is 
amended by striking subsection (e).
    (b) Title 28.--Section 1346(b) of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended by striking paragraph (2).

SEC. 3. STAYING OF NONFRIVOLOUS CIVIL ACTIONS TO PERMIT RESOLUTION 
              THROUGH ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESSES.

    Subsection (a) of section 7 of the Civil Rights of 
Institutionalized Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e(a)) is amended to read 
as follows:
    ``(a) Administrative Remedies.--
            ``(1) Presentation.--No claim with respect to prison 
        conditions under section 1979 of the Revised statutes (42 
        U.S.C. 1983), or any other Federal law, by a prisoner confined 
        in any jail, prison, or other correctional facility shall be 
        adjudicated except under section 1915A(b) of title 28, United 
        States Code, until the claim has been presented for 
        consideration to officials of the facility in which the claim 
        arose. Such presentation satisfies the requirement of this 
        paragraph if it provides prison officials of the facility in 
        which the claim arose with reasonable notice of the prisoner's 
        claim, and if it occurs within the generally applicable 
        limitations period for filing suit.
            ``(2) Stay.--If a claim included in a complaint has not 
        been presented as required by paragraph (1), and the court does 
        not dismiss the claim under section 1915A(b) of title 28, 
        United States Code, the court shall stay the action for a 
        period not to exceed 90 days and shall direct prison officials 
        to consider the relevant claim or claims through such 
        administrative process as they deem appropriate. However, the 
        court shall not stay the action if the court determines that 
        the prisoner is in danger of immediate harm.
            ``(3) Proceeding.--Upon the expiration of the stay under 
        paragraph (2), the court shall proceed with the action except 
        to the extent the court is notified by the parties that it has 
        been resolved.''.

SEC. 4. EXEMPTION OF JUVENILES FROM PRISON LITIGATION REFORM ACT.

    (a) Title 18.--
            (1) Juvenile proceedings.--Section 3626(g) of title 18, 
        United States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (3) by striking ``or adjudicated 
                delinquent for,''; and
                    (B) so that paragraph (5) reads as follows:
            ``(5) the term `prison' means any Federal, State, or local 
        facility that incarcerates or detains prisoners;''.
            (2) Adult convictions.--Section 3626 of title 18, United 
        States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Exclusion of Child Prisoners.--This section does not apply 
with respect to a prisoner who has not attained the age of 18 years.''.
    (b) Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act.--
            (1) Section 7(h) of the Civil Rights of Institutionalized 
        Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e(h)), is amended by striking ``or 
        adjudicated delinquent for,''.
            (2) Section 7 of the Civil Rights of Institutionalized 
        Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997e) is amended by adding at the end 
        the following:
    ``(i) Exclusion of Child Prisoners.--This section does not apply 
with respect to a prisoner who has not attained the age of 18 years.''.
    (c) Title 28.--Title 28, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in section 1915(h)--
                    (A) by inserting ``who has attained the age of 18 
                years'' after ``means any person''; and
                    (B) by striking ``or adjudicated delinquent for,''; 
                and
            (2) in section 1915A(c)--
                    (A) by inserting ``who has attained the age of 18 
                years'' after ``means any person''; and
                    (B) by striking ``or adjudicated delinquent for,''.

SEC. 5. MODIFICATION OF BAN ON MULTIPLE IN FORMA PAUPERIS CLAIMS.

    Section 1915(g) of title 28, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``within the preceding 5 years'' after ``3 
        or more occasions''; and
            (2) by striking ``, malicious, or fails to state a claim 
        upon which relief may be granted'' and inserting ``or 
        malicious''.

SEC. 6. FILING FEES IN FORMA PAUPERIS.

    Section 1915(b)(1) of title 28, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``or files an appeal''; and
            (2) by inserting ``and the action is dismissed at initial 
        screening pursuant to subsection (e)(2) of this section, 
        section 1915A of this title, or section 7(c)(1) of the Civil 
        Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1997e(c)(1)),'' after ``in forma pauperis,''.

SEC. 7. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT TO RESOLVE AMBIGUITY.

    Section 1915(a)1) of title 28, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``that includes a statement of all assets such prisoner 
possesses'' and inserting ``(including a statement of assets such 
person possesses)''.

SEC. 8. ENCOURAGEMENT OF APPROPRIATE SETTLEMENT OF PRISONER LITIGATION.

    Section 3626(c)(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended, by 
striking the period at the end and inserting ``, except that the 
violation of a Federal right may be alleged by plaintiff rather than 
proven or stipulated.''.

SEC. 9. JUDICIAL DISCRETION IN CRAFTING PRISON ABUSE REMEDIES.

    Section 3626 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(2) by striking the final sentence;
            (2) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by inserting ``if that party 
        demonstrates that it has eliminated the violation of the 
        Federal right that gave rise to the prospective relief and that 
        the violation is reasonably unlikely to recur'' after 
        ``intervener'';
            (3) in subsection (b)(1)(B), by adding at the end the 
        following: ``Nothing in this section shall prevent the court 
        from extending any of the time periods set out in subsection 
        (A), if the court finds, at the time of granting or approval of 
        the prospective relief, that correction of the violation will 
        take longer than those time periods.''; and
            (4) in subsection (e) by striking paragraphs (2), (3), and 
        (4).

SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by this Act shall apply to all cases currently 
pending in Federal court and any such cases filed on or after the date 
of enactment of this Act.
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