Artwork runs afoul of prison policies
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2005
LINCOLN (AP) -- Lincoln Correctional Center offers prisoners few chances for self-expression.
But inmate Tyler Keup, 21, has found his: drawing.
"It sometimes almost feels as though, ever since I've been incarcerated, there's no way for me to say, 'Hey, this is not who I am,"' said Keup.
"Art is a way for me to say that, to be able to express myself," he said.
He used ball point pens when he began sketching shortly after being arrested in 2000. He is serving 30 to 60 years for murder.
"A lot of nights I'm up until 2 or 3 in the morning, drawing," he said.
He wants to share his work with his family, but he's run into prison rules.
In March he wanted to send two drawings to his parents in North Platte. One was a collage in the form of a crucifix; the other an image of young woman whose breasts were uncovered. A marijuana leaf was among the crucifix images.
Prison rules don't allow the creation or mailing of artwork depicting uncovered female breasts, "lewd, lascivious" images or images of illegal drugs.
Prison officials wouldn't let Keup mail the drawings, so he appealed to Correctional Services Director Frank Hopkins, who sided in May with the Lincoln prison officials.
Keup filed a federal suit on Aug. 23, arguing that prison rules infringed on his First Amendment right to free speech.
Neither drawing advocates illegal acts, he said in his petition.
"Why can't I draw nudity?" he asked. "What's the substantial harm for the prison?"
He said the crucifix images reflected his life: The marijuana leaf, an eight ball and dice represent foolish behavior. A woman with a halo represents Maricela Martinez, the woman Keup fatally shot, he said.
Keup says he did not intend to kill the woman, but he refers to her as his "victim."
"I'm truly remorseful for my crime," he said. "Art is a way for me to cope."
Warden Dennis Bakewell said he was not familiar with Keup's drawings.
He said the prison prohibits artwork that could become models for tattoos, which, for mainly for health reasons, the prison forbids prisoners to give each other.
Michael Fenner, a Creighton University law professor, disagreed with the tattoo reasoning, because Keup is trying to send out the artwork.
But inmate Tyler Keup, 21, has found his: drawing.
"It sometimes almost feels as though, ever since I've been incarcerated, there's no way for me to say, 'Hey, this is not who I am,"' said Keup.
"Art is a way for me to say that, to be able to express myself," he said.
He used ball point pens when he began sketching shortly after being arrested in 2000. He is serving 30 to 60 years for murder.
"A lot of nights I'm up until 2 or 3 in the morning, drawing," he said.
He wants to share his work with his family, but he's run into prison rules.
In March he wanted to send two drawings to his parents in North Platte. One was a collage in the form of a crucifix; the other an image of young woman whose breasts were uncovered. A marijuana leaf was among the crucifix images.
Prison rules don't allow the creation or mailing of artwork depicting uncovered female breasts, "lewd, lascivious" images or images of illegal drugs.
Prison officials wouldn't let Keup mail the drawings, so he appealed to Correctional Services Director Frank Hopkins, who sided in May with the Lincoln prison officials.
Keup filed a federal suit on Aug. 23, arguing that prison rules infringed on his First Amendment right to free speech.
Neither drawing advocates illegal acts, he said in his petition.
"Why can't I draw nudity?" he asked. "What's the substantial harm for the prison?"
He said the crucifix images reflected his life: The marijuana leaf, an eight ball and dice represent foolish behavior. A woman with a halo represents Maricela Martinez, the woman Keup fatally shot, he said.
Keup says he did not intend to kill the woman, but he refers to her as his "victim."
"I'm truly remorseful for my crime," he said. "Art is a way for me to cope."
Warden Dennis Bakewell said he was not familiar with Keup's drawings.
He said the prison prohibits artwork that could become models for tattoos, which, for mainly for health reasons, the prison forbids prisoners to give each other.
Michael Fenner, a Creighton University law professor, disagreed with the tattoo reasoning, because Keup is trying to send out the artwork.
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