For a number of years now, the inmates of the Lone Star State's prisons have done without the Texas Almanac. The almanac, along with pornography, hate writings, and outdoor magazines that talk about wilderness survival skills, sits on a list of contraband literature in the prison system.

Why the almanac?

...Well, correctional officials feel that, much like the survival magazines, the almanac's information could assist a prisoner who's looking to escape.

...Namely, the detailed county maps found in the Texas Almanac, which show deserted roads that lead to towns, dry riverbeds, and mountains and valleys, could serve as a directional compass for escapees from the hoosegow.

..."A map would be of great assistance if you were planning to go over the wall," said Larry Fitzgerald of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
......."Once they're outside the walls, they go, 'Ooh, I'm out here. What do I do now?' A lot of times they won't have any idea really where they are, what road leads to where," Fitzgerald said in giving his on-target impression of an escaped convict's thoughts.

...As you might suspect, the publisher of the almanac, the Dallas Morning News, simply sees the ban as a marketing opportunity.
...Already one of their ads says, "If the maps are so good prisoners aren't allowed to read them -- imagine what they can do for you."

...Defense attorney Tom Mills of Dallas opines that the censorship is yet another example of how prisons turn their focus away from education.

...However, the American Civil Liberties Union hasn't found that the ban infringes on inmates' rights. Jay Jacobson of the ACLU of Texas notes, "I think one might be able to express a legitimate security concern with a detailed map that shows nooks and crannies, every hill and dale."

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