Demand Letter to Cobb County Sheriff's Office Regarding Marietta Daily Journal

The ACLU of Georgia sent a letter to the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office regarding a complaint about an alleged new policy banning the Marietta Daily Journal in the Detention Center. Allegedly, on January 12, 2020, deputies at the Detention Center were ordered to discard Marietta Daily Journal newspapers “to prevent inmates AND staff from seeing the article about the jail.”

The U.S. Supreme Court has established that people who are detained have the First Amendment right to read a wide range of books and literature. The First Amendment prohibits viewpoint discrimination and encompasses the right of people detained in jail to receive the newspapers of their choice. Additionally, the First Amendment encompasses the right of third parties, such as the Marietta Daily Journal, to share publications with people detained in jail.