Boston Marathon bomber files handwritten lawsuit over treatment in prison

The Boston Marathon bomber filed a handwritten lawsuit over his treatment in prison almost eight years after the attack at the race occurred.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev originally filed the lawsuit against BOP, the company in charge of the prison, and Attorney General Merrick Garland in January, but amended the lawsuit on March 5, CBS Boston reported.

Tsarnaev claims it is cruel and unusual punishment for him to only be allowed to have in-person visits from his nieces and nephews but no written or audio contact with them. He is also only allowed to call his sister and parents twice a month.

He also has not been able to send pictures to his family since 2019, which he says is making him suffer “psychological injury, emotional distress and destruction of my familial relationships.”

Tsarnaev, along with his brother, planned the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013 that killed three people and injured 260 others.

He has been under special administrative measures (SAM) in prison since 2013 due to his “proclivity to violence.” These measures mean he doesn’t get the same privileges as other inmates, according to CBS Boston.

“As a result of the imposition of the SAMs restrictions, I have experienced continued, extreme, and unjustifiable difficulties communicating and corresponding with family members and attorneys,” he said.

Tsarnaev is having money withheld from his account in prison because it was sent from an unauthorized person and is not allowed to send hobby crafts to his legal counsel, the lawsuit says.

The restricted access to his counsel could hurt his case, Tsarnaev claims, as the Justice Department decided in 2020 to seek the death penalty for him.