Dear Friends, It took the deaths of 19 people in New York City jails in 2022 before the New York City Council made history by passing a law that ends solitary confinement in city jails (except in cases where individuals pose a threat due to a violent incident while in custody) AND then overriding the mayor's veto of the bill. The new law that goes into effect this summer guarantees at least 14 hours of out-of-cell time in shared spaces, ensuring a humane approach to confinement and discipline. Similarly, a mid-February report from the Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General details 344 non-medical deaths between 2014 and 2021 in federal custody, a majority of which were attributed to suicide. This report sparked an immediate U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Feb. 28 which brought Colette Peters, Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, in to testify on why the BOP has failed to implement multiple recommendations over the years to better protect those in custody– including severely restricting solitary confinement. With partners in the Federal Anti-Solitary Taskforce, we submitted written testimony for the hearing. It is well known that even short periods of solitary confinement can lead to heightened risks of self-harm, suicide, and other forms of violence. Johnny Perez, Director of NRCAT’s U.S. Prisons Program and a solitary survivor, has noted that these cells create “a sense of hopelessness, despair,” and in some cases, serious mental health consequences that tragically too often lead to suicide or other forms of self-harm. Read more from Johnny’s interview by Washington Post columnist Joe Davidson following the DOJ Inspector General report. The win in NYC and the increased pressure on the federal Bureau of Prisons being brought by NRCAT and its human rights partners represents new and significant steps toward ending the senseless torture and deaths of solitary confinement. Help us keep up the pressure – Write to your Members of Congress and ask them to sign on as a co-sponsor of the federal End Solitary Confinement Act. Sincerely, The NRCAT Team | |
