Solitary Confinement In Colorado Prisons Overused, State-Funded Report Finds

[_eh]

Source: The Huffington Post

Colorado could "significantly reduce" the unusually high percentage of its prison inmates held in long-term solitary confinement by instituting several low-cost reforms, corrections experts said in a state-ordered report released last week.

Nearly 7 percent of Colorado state prisoners are held in long-term solitary confinement, compared to a national average of 1-2 percent. Roughly a quarter of these inmates suffer from serious mental illness, and 40 percent of them are released directly from solitary confinement into the community.

The report raises the possibility that Colorado prison officials are prepared to institute serious reforms and bring the state closer in line with solitary confinement policies in other states, said Mark Silverstein, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union in Colorado.

"The very existence of this report may signal that the Colorado Department of Corrections is ready for a significant change," said Silverstein. "It's change that's long overdue."

Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/28/solitary-confinement-colorado-prisoners_n_1117433.html

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I once spent 16 days in the Canadian equivalent of a county jail, and I didn't want any company!

[Diclotican]

1. _eh

_eh

It is still a difference between 16 days in a county jail, and 5-10 year in solitary confinement.... You doesn't get mad by sitting in a county jail 16 days.. But you can go totally nutters when you have 5-10 year with minimal contact with the outside world.. if you doesn't have an mental illness when you get in, you surly get one when you are getting out...

Diclotican

[Solly Mack]

2. k/r