Examples Of Solitary Confinement

Solitary Confinement

Every day 48,000 inmates are held in solitary confinement for 22 hours or more. These inmates are held in confined spaces for days and sometimes years. This is detrimental to the health and well-being of inmates, and it can leave them permanently disabled. Even though it negatively affects the inmates, many people believe that they deserve this treatment because of their crimes. However, solitary confinement is an inhumane practice that needs to be abolished due to poor living conditions and negative effects on the inmates' health.

To start, inmates in solitary confinement experience miserable living conditions that restrict their physical and mental capabilities. They live in confined spaces for up to 23 hours each day,

Inmates in confinement have no contact with any human beings other than the guards, and this often leads to extreme mental health problems. Additionally, many inmates do not receive proper medical treatment and are left with severe physical health complications. One example of these health problems is presented in an excerpt from the American Law Yearbook from 2017. In this excerpt, the authors say, “Those held in solitary confinement are often subject to physical torture, including different types of restraints. Prisoners report that they also endure nonphysical torture, such as sensory deprivation, forced insomnia, permanent bright lighting, and extreme temperature.” This quote provides many examples of torture in solitary confinement, which is a result of the actions of the prison guards. Many of these examples can lead to disruption in inmate sleep cycles, mental illness, and physical complications. In Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, we see the effects of these types of torture when he presents the story of the juvenile offender, Ian Manuel. In Chapter 8 of the novel, Stevenson describes Manuel’s problems when he says, “In solitary, Ian became a self-described “cutter”; he would take anything sharp on his food tray to hurt himself. His mental health unraveled, and he attempted suicide several times. Each time he hurt himself or acted out, his time in isolation was extended.” This story is important because it gives the readers a real-life example of the effects of long periods of confinement. Additionally, it shows us how inhumane the justice system is because they extended his time in solitary confinement due to the effects of his mental illness. Instead of adding to his time, they should have removed him from confinement and provided the necessary resources for mental recovery. To conclude, many sources and real-life examples show us how an inmate’s health can be