In “How Federal Prisons Stonewall Grievances and Deny Care for Years” a joint investigative report between the Marshall Project and National Public Radio found that the federal prison grievance system is widely considered ineffective, with grant rates plunging from nearly 7% in 2000 to less than 2% in recent years. The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) routinely dismisses complaints over minor procedural flaws, loses paperwork, and uses medical delays to deny inmates necessary care.
Of all medical grievances filed, fewer than 1% are granted. Prison staff often use delays to let conditions worsen, effectively denying care by waiting until major surgical intervention is required instead of preventative treatment.
Nearly half of all complaints are thrown out on technicalities. Incarcerated people reported rejections for arbitrary issues, such as writing on the wrong size paper or exceeding copy limits. The Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), which became law in 1996, requires incarcerated persons to exhaust all internal grievance steps before they can sue. Because the BOP rejects almost every filing, most prisoners are legally blocked from taking their cases to court, where a judge might otherwise order prison officials to provide relief.
Additionally, BOP officials increasingly categorize cases as “for informational purposes only” or just “closed,” which circumvents official denial numbers and allows the BOP to avoid taking corrective action.
Not surprisingly, incarcerated persons are frequently deterred from filing complaints about abuse or neglect due to the threat of physical assault, placement in solitary confinement, or other retaliatory punishments from prison guards. Prisons are closed environments prone to systemic corruption and abuse. A transparent grievance process ensures that records are created while memories are fresh. This oversight is critical for investigating serious issues like staff misconduct, retaliation, and poor health care.
A functioning complaint process is essential in prisons to protect constitutional rights, prevent violence, and maintain institutional safety. By providing a functional, formal avenue for incarcerated individuals to resolve issues, it helps uncover staff misconduct, curbs informal retribution among prisoners, and creates the required legal record for judicial review. Granting prisoners a voice provides a symbolic baseline of fairness and legitimacy. When incarcerated individuals feel heard and respected, it improves overall prison morale, compliance with rules, and mental well-being.
Jack Donson, a former bureau official and executive director of the Federal Prison Education and Reform Alliance, said the system is getting even harder to navigate. “I’ve seen people rejected for too many copies, not enough copies, the rejections are all over the map,” he said. “I’ve never seen it so dysfunctional.” As understaffing across federal prisons continues, there are even fewer employees available to review complaints.
Read more at “‘Rejected’: How Federal Prisons Stonewall Grievances and Deny Care for Years” at the Marshall Project website. The Marshall Project is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that seeks to create and sustain a sense of national urgency about the U.S. criminal justice system.
