(a) All records maintained by the department in the name of an individual prisoner, including medical records, shall be the property of the department.
(b) In any pro se civil action subject to this chapter, where the State of Alabama, an agency of the State of Alabama, an employee of the State of Alabama, or a private contractor providing services to the department is named as a defendant, the commissioner of the department may share any records maintained in the name of the prisoner filing suit with counsel representing the above-named defendants.