Claims of mishandling of inmate mail arise at Idaho State Correction Center

An Idaho Department of Correction officer at the Idaho State Correctional Center alleges that staff members are deliberately destroying inmates' mail and other important documents.

• The claims, detailed in an email chain obtained by Idaho News 6 through a public records request, allege a pattern of mishandling dating back to November 2023.

( Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)

Scott Amos works as an officer at the Idaho State Correctional Center in South Boise, where he claims staff members are purposely and repeatedly destroying mail to and from inmates.

Idaho News 6 obtained an email chain through a public records request that outlines a series of his complaints about inmate mail being mishandled as far back as November 2023.

In the email, Officer Amos, who declined our request for an on-camera interview citing an internal IDOC investigation, claims mail, concern forms, medical requests, and other documents were intentionally misplaced. He wrote:

“I found their incoming and outgoing mail, concern forms, diet slips, job applications, and many other personal documents discarded in the shred bins, drawers, and closets instead of being delivered to their intended recipients.”

Under Idaho state law, inmates are entitled to send and receive mail for purposes such as communication with family, friends, and legal counsel, as well as access to greeting cards, newspapers, books, and more, so long as they adhere to IDOC’s mail-handling guidelines.

Officer Amos further alleges that a number of concern forms—critical for inmates to raise issues about visits, medical complaints, and other requests—were intentionally misplaced or never delivered to the intended recipients.

On separate occasions, Amos alleged the private property of one inmate was unlawfully discarded, another inmate’s medical urinalysis had been thrown away, and various applications, dietary requests, and important legal paperwork were withheld.

Amos continued in his email complaint:

“Due to IDOC management not addressing the other issues, I informed select residents…”

In response, it appears his supervisors were most concerned with Amos’s actions, responding:

“Even if that was the case, informing offenders of this could have led to a serious incident. Could you please explain why you did this?” wrote one IDOC supervisor.

Another officer questioned his correspondence with individuals outside of IDOC:

“You may have sent an email with the state computer to an outside source, which is something we have discussed in the past regarding the chain of command,”

The officer continued:

“My intention for retrieving the information is to ensure we at the facility are doing our due diligence to address any concerns you may have,”

We reached out to the Idaho Department of Correction for comment and have yet to receive a response.