Maine DOC Policy 29.1 - Adult Resident Grievance Process

The Maine Department of Corrections policy governing grievances filed by people held in adult correctional facilities, adopted by the Commissioner under 34-A M.R.S.A. Section 1402(5). The policy took effect January 13, 2003 and was last revised March 8, 2022, and it is adopted as an Administrative Procedure Act rule. It establishes a process for reviewing and resolving complaints other than matters that have their own separate grievance or appeal route, and it states the expectation that a resident will try to resolve a complaint through the grievance process before filing a lawsuit. The 18-page document defines duplicate, frivolous and abusive grievances, requires use of the official grievance form, assigns a trained Grievance Review Officer at each facility, and sets a ten-day filing window for grievances about a policy, procedure, practice or condition of confinement.