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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
Time: 11:29 pm
Time: 11:29 pm
Results for supermax prisons
8 results foundAuthor: Hafemeister, Thomas L. Title: The Ninth Circle of Hell: An Eighth Amendment Analysis of Imposing Prolonged Supermax Solitary Confinement on Inmates with a Mental Illness Summary: The increasing number of inmates with a mental disorder in America’s prison population and the inadequacy of their treatment and housing conditions have been issues of growing significance in recent years. The U.S. Department of Justice estimates that “over one and a quarter million people suffering from mental health problems are in prisons or jails, a figure that constitutes nearly sixty percent of the total incarcerated population in the United States.” Furthermore, a person suffering from a mental illness in the United States is three times more likely to be incarcerated than hospitalized, with as many as forty percent of those who suffer from a mental illness coming into contact with the criminal justice system every year and police officers almost twice as likely to arrest someone who appears to have a mental illness. As a result, the United States penal system has become the nation’s largest provider of mental health services, a “tragic consequence of inadequate community mental health services combined with punitive criminal justice policies.” This growth in the number of inmates with a mental disorder, combined with the recent rise of prolonged supermax solitary confinement and the increasingly punitive nature of the American penological system, has resulted in a disproportionately large number of inmates with a mental disorder being housed in supermax confinement. The harsh restrictions of this confinement often significantly exacerbate these inmates’ mental disorders or otherwise cause significant additional harm to their mental health, and preclude proper mental health treatment. Given the exacerbating conditions associated with supermax settings, this setting is not only ill-suited to the penological problems posed by the growing number of these inmates, but intensifies these problems by creating a revolving door to supermax confinement for many such inmates who may be unable to conform their behavior within the prison environment. Housing inmates with a mental disorder in prolonged supermax solitary confinement deprives them of a minimal life necessity as this setting poses a significant risk to their basic level of mental health, a need “as essential to human existence as other basic physical demands . . . .”, and thereby meets the objective element required for an Eighth Amendment cruel and unusual punishment claim. In addition, placing such inmates in supermax confinement constitutes deliberate indifference to their needs as this setting subjects this class of readily identifiable and vulnerable inmates to a present and known risk by knowingly placing them in an environment that is uniquely toxic to their condition, thereby satisfying the subjective element needed for an Eighth Amendment claim. Whether it is called torture, a violation of evolving standards of human decency, or cruel and unusual punishment, truly “a risk this grave — this shocking and indecent — simply has no place in civilized society.” Details: Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia School of Law; University of Virginia School of Medicine, 2012. 62p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 18, 2012 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2032139 Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2032139 Shelf Number: 125245 Keywords: Conditions of ConfinementInmatesMental HealthPrisoners (U.S.)PunishmentSolitary ConfinementSupermax Prisons |
Author: Lowen, Matthew Title: Lifetime Lockdown: How Isolation Conditions Impact Prisoner Reentry Summary: Imagine living completely alone 23 hours a day for several months or years, then being placed in a three-person cell in an overcrowded, noisy dormitory, or worse, released directly into society with no chance to adjust. This is the reality faced by many people in Arizona state prisons. In recent years, prisoner reentry has emerged as an area of concern for social service agencies, prisoner advocates, religious congregations, neighborhoods, and advocacy organizations across the country. Much of the discourse about prisoner reentry and recidivism has focused on what are referred to as “collateral consequences”: the structural barriers erected by institutions that bar people with criminal convictions from voting, housing, employment, welfare assistance, and other factors critical to ensuring success upon release. Rarely is there discussion of the direct impact that prison conditions have on a person’s cognitive, emotional, social, and behavioral functioning and therefore, on that person’s ability to function as a member of society post-incarceration. Yet, a growing body of research clearly demonstrates the deleterious mental health impacts of incarceration in super maximum-security—or “supermax”—environments, commonly referred to as “lockdown,” the “SHU,” or “Ad-Seg.” While there is some variation, these units generally employ long-term solitary confinement—prisoners are housed alone in small cells for 23-24 hours per day with no activities with other inmates (meals, recreation, etc.), for years at a time. These conditions amount to sensory deprivation and have been widely documented to produce a set of mental health symptoms that can be extremely debilitating to prisoners, including visual and auditory hallucinations, hypersensitivity to noise and touch, paranoia, uncontrollable feelings of rage and fear, and massive distortions of time and perception. Studies have found that supermax confinement increases the risk of prisoner suicides, and this research is borne out here in Arizona. A recent investigation found that Arizona's official prison-suicide rate is 60 percent higher than the national average, and that the majority of suicides took place in supermax units.1 Combining these crippling symptoms with the extensive legal and structural barriers to successful reentry is a recipe for failure. Prisoners in supermax are deeply traumatized and essentially socially disabled. When their sentence ends, they are given little or no preparation for release, and then return to their communities where they are expected to obtain housing and employment. This report represents the first effort to directly link conditions in Arizona’s supermax prisons with the state’s high recidivism rate. Because the statistical evidence of this link is already available, the basis of this report is qualitative research conducted by an anthropologist, Dr. Brackette F. Williams. Dr. Williams interviewed newly released individuals who had spent a significant portion of their time in prison in supermax facilities. This research demonstrates the “why” and “how” of this causal relationship, illustrating the impacts of long-term solitary confinement on actual re-entry experiences. The findings are a wake-up call to corrections officials, state leaders, and social service agencies, who are often completely unaware of the prison experiences of their clients or how to assist them in this transition. The American Friends Service Committee hopes that this research will add to the growing body of evidence that the practice of long-term solitary confinement in supermax units creates more problems than it is purported to solve and should be abolished. Details: Tucson, AZ: American Friends Service Committee, Arizona Office, 2012. 44p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 11, 2012 at: http://afsc.org/sites/afsc.civicactions.net/files/documents/AFSC-Lifetime-Lockdown-Report_0.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://afsc.org/sites/afsc.civicactions.net/files/documents/AFSC-Lifetime-Lockdown-Report_0.pdf Shelf Number: 125981 Keywords: Maximum Security PrisonsPrisoner ReentryPrisonersSolitary Confinement (Arizona)Supermax Prisons |
Author: John Howard Association of Illinois Title: A Price Illinois Cannot Afford: Tamms and the Costs of Long-Term Isolation Summary: In “A Price Illinois Cannot Afford: Tamms and The Costs of Long-Term Isolation,” (PDF) the John Howard Association (JHA) offers an unprecedented analysis of the operations and policies of Illinois’ only supermax prison. This special report was based in part on a March 2012 visit that followed Governor Quinn’s proposal to close Tamms. The report sets out JHA’s findings with respect to conditions of inmates housed in the facility's closed maximum security unit (C-Max), considerations regarding Tamms’ proposed closure, and the costs and consequences of long-term isolation. Key Findings • It costs almost $65,000 per year to house an inmate at Tamms—the highest cost of any DOC facility. • Most inmates spend 23 to 24 hours alone in their cells without social interaction, human contact, or sensory stimulation. This state of isolation can extend for months, years or indefinitely. Some Tamms inmates have spent more than a decade in this isolation. • Approximately 18 percent of Tamms inmates are 50 years or older. • While Tamms offers no re-entry programs, the majority of its inmates will be released and returned to the community. • In observing, visiting, and communicating with Tamms inmates, JHA found evidence of inmates suffering deleterious effects to their mental and physical health related to long-term isolation. • JHA found that Tamms’ staff are not given adequate training, strategies, resources, and professional support to assist them in managing and interacting with mentally ill and selfinjuring inmates. • At its peak, Tamms held 287 inmates in C-Max. At the start of 2010, it held 265 inmates. On November 9, 2010, the date of JHA’s last visit, Tamms held 207 inmates. At the time of JHA’s most recent visit, that number had dropped by almost 30, for a total of about 180 inmates. • According to DOC Director Godinez’s Closure Recommendations, Tamms’ staff will be offered positions in nearby facilities that suffer from chronic understaffing, minimizing job loss. Details: Chicago: John Howard Association of Illinois, 2012. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 29, 2012 at: http://thejha.org/sites/default/files/TammsReport.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://thejha.org/sites/default/files/TammsReport.pdf Shelf Number: 126499 Keywords: Costs of IncarcerationMaximum-Security PrisonsPrisoners (Illinois)Supermax Prisons |
Author: Lovell, David Title: Felony and Violent Recidivism Among Supermax Prison Inmates in Washington State: A Pilot Study Summary: Since the early 1980’s, most prison system have built specially designed facilities that keep selected offenders in lockdown status for lengthy periods of time, sometimes years, on the grounds that they pose a danger to the prison community. There have been several successful court challenges to some aspects of these practices, for example confinement of psychologically vulnerable inmates in such facilities, but there is scarcely any systematic research on who gets assigned to supermax, how it affects them while they’re there, whether such facilities actually reduce violence within prison systems, and whether it has any bearing on their later behavior. This study compares recidivism in the community by released offenders who were and who were not subjected to substantial periods of supermax confinement while in prison. Specifically, we ask: 1. Whether supermax assignment is associated with the probability, seriousness, or timing of new offenses. 2. Whether the probability, timing, and seriousness of new offenses is associated with (a) the amount of time offenders spend in supermax environments or (b) the length of the interval between transfer out of supermax and release to the community. Details: Seattle: University of Washington, Department of Psychosocial & Community Health, 2004. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 12, 2013 at: http://www.son.washington.edu/faculty/fac-page-files/Lovell-SupermaxRecidivism-4-19-04.pdf Year: 2004 Country: United States URL: http://www.son.washington.edu/faculty/fac-page-files/Lovell-SupermaxRecidivism-4-19-04.pdf Shelf Number: 127911 Keywords: PrisonersRecidivismSupermax Prisons |
Author: Amnesty International Title: Entombed: Isolation in the U.S. Federal Prison System Summary: The USA incarcerates thousands of prisoners in long-term or indefinite solitary confinement. This report describes Amnesty International's concerns about conditions of severe isolation at the United States Penitentiary, Administrative Maximum (ADX) facility in Colorado, currently the only super-maximum security prison operated by the federal government. It also examines conditions in Special Management Units (SMUs) and Security Housing Units (SHUs) operated at other federal prison facilities. Since Amnesty International toured ADX prison in 2001 subsequent requests to return to the facility have been denied. The organisation is concerned that as conditions of isolation within federal prisons have become more severe, external oversight of the facilities has declined. With prisoners held in their cells for 22-24 hours a day in severe physical and social isolation, Amnesty International believes the conditions described in this report breach international standards for the humane treatment of prisoners. Many have been held in isolation for prolonged or indefinite periods - without a means to change their circumstances - amounting to a violation of the prohibition against cruel inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under international law. The report also details disturbing evidence of prisoners with serious mental illness being detained in harsh isolated conditions without adequate screening, treatment or monitoring. Details: London: AI, 2014. 54p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 16, 2014 at: http://www.amnesty.org/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/P4384USAEntombedReportFinalWeb15072014.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.amnesty.org/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/P4384USAEntombedReportFinalWeb15072014.pdf Shelf Number: 132691 Keywords: Federal PrisonsMaximum Security PrisonsPrisonersPunishmentSolitary ConfinementSupermax Prisons |
Author: Lowen, Matthew Title: Still Buried Alive: Arizona Prisoner Testimonies on Isolation in Maximum-Security Summary: Still Buried Alive: Arizona Prisoner Testimonies on Isolation in Maximum Security (2014) highlights the voices of maximum-security prisoners and catalogues their testimonies describing those experiences. The report, a critical follow-up to Buried Alive (2007) and Lifetime Lockdown (2012), was released on the same day that the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) opened 500 newly constructed maximum-security prison beds in ASPC Lewis in Buckeye, Arizona. Details: Tucson, AZ: American Friends Service Committee, Arizona, 2014. 26p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 15, 2015 at: http://afsc.org/sites/afsc.civicactions.net/files/documents/Still%20Buried%20Alive%20FINAL%2011.30.14.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://afsc.org/sites/afsc.civicactions.net/files/documents/Still%20Buried%20Alive%20FINAL%2011.30.14.pdf Shelf Number: 134314 Keywords: Maximum Security PrisonsPrisoner ReentryPrisonersSolitary Confinement (Arizona)Supermax Prisons |
Author: American Civil Liberties Union Title: The Dangerous Overuse of Solitary Confinement in the United States Summary: Over the last two decades, the use of solitary confinement in U.S. correctional facilities has surged. Before 1990, "supermax" prisons were rare. Now, 44 states and the federal government have supermax units, where prisoners are held in extreme isolation, often for years or even decades. On any given day in this country, it's estimated that over 80,000 prisoners are held in isolated confinement. This massive increase in the use of solitary has happened despite criticism from legal and medical professionals, who have deemed the practice unconstitutional and inhumane. It's happened despite the fact that supermax prisons typically cost two or three times more to build and operate than traditional maximum-security prisons. And it's happened despite research suggesting that supermax prisons actually have a negative effect on public safety. As fiscal realities are forcing us to cut budgets for things like health and education, it is time to ask whether we should continue to use solitary confinement despite its high fiscal and human costs. This briefing paper provides an overview of the excessive use of solitary confinement in the U.S. and strategies for safely restricting its use. Details: New York: ACLU, 2014. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Briefing Paper: Accessed April 1, 2015 at: https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/assets/stop_solitary_briefing_paper_updated_august_2014.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/assets/stop_solitary_briefing_paper_updated_august_2014.pdf Shelf Number: 135105 Keywords: Costs of CorrectionsIsolationPrisonersPrisonsSolitary Confinement (U.S.)Supermax Prisons |
Author: Correctional Association of New York Title: Solitary at Southport: A 2017 Report based upon the Correctional Association's Visits, Data Analysis, & First-Hand Accounts of the Torture of Solitary Confinement from One of New York's Supermax Prisons Summary: Solitary confinement is torture. New York State (NYS) subjects people to solitary confinement and other forms of isolation at rates above the national average and in a racially disparate manner. On any given day, in NYS prisons alone roughly 2,900 people are held in Special Housing Units (SHU) and an additional estimated 1,000 or more people are held in keeplock (KL). In 2015 after limited SHU reforms, the number of people in SHU rose to over 4,100, the highest rate of solitary in the history of NYS prisons, more than a third higher than in the early 2000s and higher than its previous 2012 peak. Even with some reductions in 2016 and 2017, NYS's rate of isolation - nearly 8% including KL and 5.8% if only SHU - is much higher than the national average of 4.4% and four or more times higher than some states - like Colorado, Washington, and Connecticut - that have less than 1% or 2% of incarcerated people in solitary. In the SHU or KL, people are held alone in their cells 23-24 hours a day, without any meaningful human contact or out-of-cell programming, with limited or no access to phone calls, and often with limited, restricted, or no visits. The sensory deprivation, lack of normal human interaction, and extreme idleness have long been proven to cause intense suffering, devastating physical, mental, and emotional effects, and the increased likelihood of self-harm. Solitary - "the Box" - can cause deterioration in people's behavior, while limits on solitary have had neutral or even positive effects on institutional safety. The Mandela Rules - recently adopted by the entire United Nations General Assembly, supported by a US delegation consisting of corrections administrators, and voted for by the US government - prohibit solitary beyond 15 consecutive days. Yet, in New York people are regularly held in solitary for months, years, and even for decades. Southport Correctional Facility is one of the two super-maximum security prisons in NYS with the primary purpose of holding people in solitary or isolated confinement. Southport was originally a regular maximum security prison, but became New York's first prison dedicated entirely to solitary confinement in 1991. The budget to operate this supermax is almost $39 million per year. Southport currently incarcerates about 400 people in solitary in the SHU. Beyond the already racially disproportionate infliction of solitary across prisons statewide, nearly 90% of people in the SHU at Southport are Black (62%) or Latino (27%), while only 2% of Correctional Officers (COs) at Southport are Black (1.4%) or Latino (0.7%). Even more extreme, and reflective of the deeply engrained racism of the prison system, of all people who were held at Southport for the entirety of 2015, 76% of all the people who were held at Southport in 2015 were Black. The Correctional Association of New York (CA) conducted a full monitoring visit of Southport in February 2015 and further investigations of Southport in 2015 and 2016. During the 2015 visit, the CA spoke one-on-one with nearly every person in the SHU while we were there. The CA subsequently received over 190 written surveys from people in Southport's SHU, had repeated correspondence with numerous people incarcerated at Southport, conducted extensive interviews in 2015 and 2016 with nearly 50 people held in the SHU at Southport, and analyzed prison-specific and system-wide data. To even begin to have some understanding of the real experience of solitary at Southport requires learning directly from the people who are living in solitary the details of what they are enduring. The narratives in this publication provide representative examples of the experiences of the hundreds of people the CA communicated with at Southport. Details: New York: The Correctional Association of New York, 2017. 92p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 17, 2018 at: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Solitary-at-Southport-Final-Web-12-10-17.pdf Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Solitary-at-Southport-Final-Web-12-10-17.pdf Shelf Number: 148783 Keywords: Administrative SegregationIsolationPrisonersRestrictive HousingSolitary ConfinementSupermax Prisons |