Appeals court delays ruling on inmates’ interest

Thursday, Aug. 14, 2003 | 9:38 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that more hearings will be required to determine if Nevada's prison system illegally used interest earned on money in an inmate's account.

Jerry D. McIntyre, who was serving time for lewdness, sued the prison system claiming it took money from his account, invested it, earned interest and then used the interest money to support the inmate welfare fund.

McIntyre, who was discharged from prison in July, claimed it was an "unconstitutional taking" of his money. The interest earned should have been credited to his account, McIntyre claimed in his 1997 lawsuit.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said it was not clear if the amount of interest earned on the money in McIntyre's account exceeded his share of the costs in administering the welfare fund.

The court, in a decision written by Judge Diarmuid F. O'Scannlain, said that information is needed before a decision can be made in the case. It called for more evidence to be gathered.

Darrel Rexwinkel, assistant director for finance in the state Department of Corrections, said Wednesday he could not immediately determine how much money was in McIntyre's account.

He said the total amount of the inmates' accounts is about $2.25 million and that the amount of interest earned on that total last year was about $60,000.

He said some inmates can have large amounts of money in their accounts for various reasons. Some are wealthy before entering prison; others may inherit money from relatives while in prison.