Norway mass murderer Breivik complains of prison's bendy pens

Mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik makes salute after he arrives at court in Oslo Friday Aug. 24, 2012 . / AP Photo/Frank Augstein

OSLO, Norway Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik, who is serving a 21-year sentence for killing 77 people in a bomb and gun rampage last year, has complained that he is being held in inhumane conditions and is being denied freedom of expression, his lawyer said Friday.

"He has written a long complaint that he is being held in a section with particularly high security," Tord Jordet told The Associated Press. "He is today the only one in this ward and the security regime is the strictest in Norway."

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The 33-year-old confessed killer has said the attacks were justified because his victims were traitors for embracing multiculturalism. The court found Breivik sane and said his sentence can be extended for as long as he is considered a danger to society.

In his letter to prison officials Breivik protested that the censorship of his letters was so strict that his freedom of expression was being impinged upon, Jordet said.

Norwegian tabloid VG, which said it had acquired a copy of the letter, quoted Breivik as saying he was allowed to use only a soft and bendable safety pen described by its manufacturer as "stab-resistant" because it yields at the slightest pressure and cannot be used as a weapon. Breivik was seen making avid notes with it during his 10-week trial at the Oslo District Court that ended in August.

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Norway suspect Anders Behring Breivik

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He said has said he wants to write books in prison but claims the special pen cramps his hand, describing it as "an almost indescribable manifestation of sadism," VG reported.

Prison officials would not comment on the letter as they were still considering the complaint.

Ellen Bjercke, a spokeswoman for Ila Prison where Breivik is being held, said that Breivik was given an electric typewriter on Friday but that it was not connected to his letter of complaint. It was not clear when Breivik's letter was delivered to prison officials.

During his pre-trial detention Breivik was allowed a computer that could not be connected to the Internet, but it was taken away from him when he started serving his sentence.

The Oslo District Court found Breivik guilty of terrorism and premeditated murder for the twin attacks on July 22, 2011, and gave him a 21-year prison sentence that can be extended if he's considered a threat.

Breivik confessed to setting off a bomb that ripped through Oslo's government district, killing eight people, then opening fire at the summer camp of the governing Labor Party's youth wing. Sixty-nine people died in the mayhem at the Utoya island camp outside the Norwegian capital Oslo before Breivik surrendered to a SWAT team.

The self-styled anti-Muslim militant denied criminal guilt, saying he's a commander of a resistance movement aiming to overthrow European governments and replace them with "patriotic" regimes that will deport Muslim immigrants. Police said they found no evidence of Breivik belonging to any such group.

[piecesparts]

Yeah, the guy is a waste of skin alright, but since Norway has the humanity and discipline to waste their resources on him, we might as well see what insight they can get from his twisted mind. Perhaps out of all of this will come some sort of understanding about how such minds work and what leads to the creation of a mass murdering monster. Perhaps he can be of some use to psychiatry. Once can only hope. There isn't much else to be gained by keeping him alive, I'm afraid.

[lorne46]

Don't let him write anything.

[ROBSTER013]

That has got to be without a doubt the most ludicrous thing i've ever heard. That piece of human waste should be dead already. He is not even worth the cost of that crappy pen.

[dutchess550]

Norway believes in rehabilitation not punishment, like we do, but this guy has been deemed an escape risk so he's not allowed the freedom other prisoners are. The penal department has hired two "friends" for him, both men trained in advanced combat techniques. One to play tennis with Anders and one to play chess. I don't know if they've started work with him yet. It's probable he'll spend his life in prison. I don't see how they found him sane; I think he's crazy as a loon.

[mahler484]

This devlish coward murderer of young innocent kids should get no pens, no typewriters, no books, NOTHING! He is the scum of the earth.

[xieksis]

Whatever he has now is TOO much...A mass murderer, esp. one that shows no remorse does not deserve to live let alone have any kind of writing instrument....
The world does not want to read anything this animal has to write about...

Stick his freedom of expression up his twinkie...

[mahler484]

you are right!!! This monster, coward murderer of children deserves to rot in hell

[lloydbest1]

Too bad about his writer's cramp. Anything he writes (or types) will almost certainly be vetted by the prison authorities before it ever sees the light of day. Given his outrageous advocacies and narrative, he should be dam'd grateful to be allowed to write anything at all.

[gadfly65]

The mention of sadism amuses me; he should watch the movie Quills.

[WillowSunstar]

Perhaps he should have thought of that before he killed all those people.