I have spent 21.5 days in solitary confinement. It’s inhumane torture. The reasons why one might find themselves in such a scenario does nothing to ameliorate that simple fact. It’s inhumane. It’s torture.
And what is its purpose? It is clearly 100% punitive as there is no rehabilitative part to time in solitary.
The first time I did 10 days for a non-crime. I had my trial on day 9, was found not guilty and released the next day back to population. That's some Alice in Wonderland shit right there -- do the time, then maybe do the crime?
The stated purpose within the block of isolation cells I was held in was protective custody—as in someone upstairs decided that you might cause harm to yourself or others if placed with the general population. This might include things like a mental health condition or crisis, an altercation with other inmates, the specific nature of your legal situation[1], and/or if you tell them during intake that you’re transsexual (this may have changed in the ~15-years since my experience). Of course, they were not under any obligation to explain their rationale for placement decisions, so these are just some of the examples I heard from guards when asked, not an official position or statement on their part.
For a few of those categories, and for anyone who’s never experienced it, this may sound like a benefit—or at least somewhat preferable to the risks one might otherwise face in the general population. But for anyone struggling with a mental health condition, or who might not be aware of what category they’re in or how long they might be there, the conditions can frequently be an unbearable psychological burden on top of what is almost certainly an already frightening and traumatic situation.
I had a cell that measured roughly 9’x4’, but because of the service column and toilet, there was not a single place where I could stand or lie down and stretch my arms out fully without encountering an obstacle. This was where I spent 23-hours of every single day I was there. The other hour was spent in a larger cell at the end of the hall with a shower and a payphone that cost my family $20 for every 15-minutes to speak with me. No windows, no daylight, no respite. The Chaplin brought a book cart around every few weeks from which you would be given something at random. Anything worth reading you could easily finish in a few days, even if pacing yourself. If you’re unlucky, you just get some Scientology bullshit. Until the very last day I was there, I had no way of knowing when I would get out. My attorney told me it could take more than a year to get to a trial. My family could not afford my bond. It wasn’t until a second surprise bond hearing 3-weeks later that I would be given an opportunity for relief that was within reach. The not knowing, the endless hours to spend with spiraling thoughts and no distractions, it’s the purest despair imaginable.
It’s one of many indefensible features of our justice system that needs to be consigned to the dark details of America’s ongoing history of atrocities.
[1] Whether you’re charged with a crime while also providing witness testimony against another inmate or that is deemed particularly vital, or the crime you’re accused of is particularly noteworthy or likely to motivate violence against you (inmates read newspapers, and word will generally spread of anyone who’s in for anything newsworthy), etc..
You had the same bond problem I had, except it took me 8.5 years to pay my bond :( I've still not been to trial yet and it is over 10.5 years. After I paid my bond I did another 9 months though because I interviewed for a newspaper about police harassment and the public defender's office Tweeted in support of the article, and I reposted it.
I've touched base with a couple of similar outfits. The problem is that it's not that exceptional. I know people above 11 years waiting for trial here in Chicago.
