58
Blackmun, J., dissenting
detainers are filed groundlessly or even in bad faith, see United States v. Mauro, 436 U. S., at 358, and n. 25, solely for the purpose of harassment, see Carchman v. Nash, 473 U. S., at 729, n. 6. For this reason, Article III is intended to provide the prisoner " 'with a procedure for bringing about a prompt test of the substantiality of detainers placed against him by other jurisdictions.' " Id., at 730, n. 6 (quoting House and Senate Reports).
These two observations—that detainers burden prisoners with onerous disabilities and that the paradigmatic detainer does not result in a new conviction—suggest that the majority has not properly assessed the balance of interests that underlies the IAD's design. Particularly in light of Article IX's command that the IAD "shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate its purposes," I find the majority's interpretation, which countenances lengthy and indeterminate delays in the resolution of outstanding detainers, impossible to sustain.
Finally, I must emphasize the somewhat obvious fact that a prisoner has no power of supervision over prison officials. Once he has handed over his request to the prison authorities, he has done all that he can do to set the process in motion. For that reason, this Court held in Houston v. Lack, 487 U. S. 266 (1988), that a pro se prisoner's notice of appeal is "filed" at the moment it is conveyed to prison authorities for forwarding to the district court. Because of the prisoner's powerlessness, the IAD's inmate-initiated 180-day period serves as a useful incentive to prison officials to forward IAD requests speedily. The Solicitor General asserts that the prisoner somehow is in a better position than are officials in the receiving State to ensure that his request is forwarded promptly, because, for example, "the prisoner can insist that he be provided with proof that his request has been mailed to the appropriate officials." Brief for United States as Amicus Curiae 16-17. This seems to me to be severely out of touch with reality. A prisoner's demands
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