Legal culture of the junior inspector responsible for sending and inspecting inmate correspondence

the article examines the legal culture of junior inspectors in the Russian penitentiary system who receive, send and review inmate correspondence, including digital platforms FSIN?Pismo and FSINET. Legal culture is conceptualized as a measurable managerial resource of legality combining knowledge of norms, a public?service ethos and stable lawful practices. Using formal?dogmatic, comparative?law and systems approaches, the paper analyses constitutional and sectoral grounds for interference with the confidentiality of correspondence, organizational procedures (registration, inspection of enclosures, reasoning of decisions, notification and information?system logging) and evidentiary transparency requirements (immutable audit logs, chain of custody, access control). A comparison with German and French models clarifies procedural safeguards (complaints, judicial and administrative oversight) relevant to Russian practice without compromising sovereign priorities. Policy proposals include standardized reasoning templates (norm – fact – aim – measure), risk?based triage while preserving the inspector’s final decision, and strengthened training and ethics. The paper argues that careful, evidence?based and procedurally respectful work enhances public trust and ensures both humanity and firmness in the execution of sentences in the digital era.

legal culture, penitentiary system, inmate correspondence, censorship, proportionality, personal data, FSIN?Pismo, FSINET