1. A. A civil action initiated against the state, the Department of Corrections, another state agency, or political subdivision, or an original action in an appellate court, or an appeal of an action whether or not the plaintiff was represented in the district court, by an inmate in a penal institution appearing pro se may be:

   1. 1. Dismissed without prejudice, by the court on its own motion or on a motion of the defendant, if all administrative and statutory remedies available to the inmate have not been exhausted; or
   2. 2. Dismissed with prejudice, by the court on a motion of the defendant, if the court is satisfied that the action is frivolous or malicious.

2. B. As used in this section:

   1. 1. "Frivolous" means having no reasonable basis in law or fact, or lacking any good faith legal argument for the extension, modification, or reversal of existing law, or being maintained solely or primarily for delay or to harass the party filed against;
   2. 2. "Inmate" or "inmate in a penal institution" includes, but is not limited to, a person in the custody or under the supervision of the Department of Corrections or the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a person who has been convicted of a crime and is incarcerated for that crime in a county jail, a person who is being held in custody for trial or sentencing, or a person on parole; and
   3. 3. "Malicious" means filing numerous actions, or actions brought in bad faith on de minimus issues.

3. C. If the court determines before or at trial that one or more of the causes of action are frivolous or malicious, any one or more of the following sanctions may be imposed:

   1. 1. Award attorney fees and actual costs incurred by the state, the Department of Corrections, another state agency, a political subdivision, the Attorney General's Office, or the defendant, not to exceed Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) per frivolous cause of action;
   2. 2. Court costs not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) per cause of action;
   3. 3. Order the Department of Corrections to revoke up to seven hundred twenty (720) earned credits accrued by the inmate;
   4. 4. Order the Department to revoke permission to have nonessential personal property of the inmate, including, but not limited to, televisions, radios, stereos, or tape recorders. If permission is revoked, the Department shall take appropriate precautions to protect the property during the period of the revocation;
   5. 5. Impose a civil sanction in an amount not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00); or
   6. 6. Impose a monetary judgment against the inmate, not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), to be paid to each named defendant.
4. D. Any award of attorney fees, or costs, or the imposition of a sanction shall serve as a judgment against the inmate and the Department is authorized to take up to fifty percent (50%) of the inmate's nonmandatory trust funds per month until paid. The judgment shall be subject to execution without further order of any court for a period of seven (7) years from the date of an award or imposition of a sanction.

Added by Laws 1985, HB 1326, c. 57, § 5, eff. November 1, 1985; Amended by Laws 1995, HB 1177, c. 141, § 2, eff. November 1, 1995; Amended by Laws 1999, SB 575, c. 127, § 1, emerg. eff. July 1, 1999 (superseded document available).