Inmates who labor for little or no wages can expect no relief from the federal court, according to a recent ruling that held prisons can pay anything at all, or even nothing, for inmate labor.
The ruling by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals came in a case filed by noted attorney and tax protestor J. Tony Serra, who was seeking significantly higher wages for his prison-enforced labor when he served several tax related stints in federal prison camps. His suit had sought higher pay for all of California’s federal prisoners under a United Nations standard that says that inmates should be paid a fair wage.
The San Francisco-based Ninth Circuit panel, in a 3-0 ruling, noted that the U.S. Constitution’s 13th Amendment, which outlawed slavery and involuntary servitude, made an exception for imprisoned criminals.
“Prisoners do not have a legal entitlement to payment for their work,” said the court ruling.
Serra, 74, had sought at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 for his job watering plants for five hours each day at the federal prison camp in Lompoc (Santa Barbara County), Californi
His lawsuit cited a standard adopted by the United Nations in 1955 which declared that prisoners should receive “equitable remuneration” for their labor.
The court ruled that the standard is not binding upon the United States and is not enforceable in court.
Among Serra’s more notable clients during a storied 50-year legal career are Black Panther leader Huey Newton, who Serra successfully defended on murder charges.
Serra, a self-described lifelong tax protestor who served federal time in 1974 for a Vietnam War-related tax protest, plead guilty in 2005 to his third tax-related conviction.
He pledged to obey the law, noting that his fight against the system is much harder from inside a prison.
