Good question, that's outside of my area of expertise, but my assumption would be that the justice system would at least allow you to communicate with your - prospective - lawyers. If not then it's a lost battle before it has begun.
It didn't work out that way in my case. Prison/jail phone systems are a wreck. I wasn't able to contact my attorney and when I brought this up to the corrections officers, they said that I had no right to. Whether this was true or just the whim of guards who take inflicting abuse as a perk of the job, the end result was the same.
Actually other inmates would be a great resource for an attorney referral. You could joke, or think common sense, would say you don't want the same lawyer as anyone who has been convicted...but the reality is even the best criminal defense lawyers will lose. You will be able to find people who have been charged with similar crimes or find convicts who have previously been charged with similar crimes and got off, but are in for something else now.
A good idea is to keep a list of lawyers, attorneys and other "can-use" people handy. Having a close one have access to that list and your banking details can help as he'll make the calls.
