Public Health and Solitary Confinement in the United States

The history of solitary confinement in the United States stretches from the silent prisons of 200 years ago to today's supermax prisons, mechanized panopticons that isolate tens of thousands, sometimes for decades. We examined the living conditions and characteristics of the populations in soli...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of public health (1971) 2015-01, Vol.105 (1), p.18-26
Main Authors: Cloud, David H, Drucker, Ernest, Browne, Angela, Parsons, Jim
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Community
Ethics
Fear of crime
Federal court decisions
Government, Law, and Public Health Practice
Human Rights
Imprisonment
Mental Health
Mortality
Population
Prisoners
Prisons
Psychosis
Public health
Public Health Practice
Segregation
Solitary confinement
Torture
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Summary:The history of solitary confinement in the United States stretches from the silent prisons of 200 years ago to today's supermax prisons, mechanized panopticons that isolate tens of thousands, sometimes for decades. We examined the living conditions and characteristics of the populations in solitary confinement. As part of the growing movement for reform, public health agencies have an ethical obligation to help address the excessive use of solitary confinement in jails and prisons in accordance with established public health functions (e.g., violence prevention, health equity, surveillance, and minimizing of occupational and psychological hazards for correctional staff). Public health professionals should lead efforts to replace reliance on this overly punitive correctional policy with models based on rehabilitation and restorative justice.
ISSN:0090-0036
1541-0048
DOI:10.2105/AJPH.2014.302205