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The Pros And Cons Of Solitary Confinement

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Many people believe placing inmates in solitary confinement is the best punishment to give, while others believe that it violates the Eight Amendment. According to Stacey Hannem-Kish in Encyclopedia of Prisons and Correctional Facilities, “Inmates are placed in solitary confinement for one of three reasons: (1) as a punishment for violating an institutional rule, (2) to protect the security of the institution, or (3) to protect inmates from others in the institution who may wish to harm them” (909). Not all prisoners have to commit one of these offenses; some are automatically assigned to solitary confinement because the offense committed was considered highly dangerous. These inmates are locked up in their cells for 23 hours a day leaving …show more content…
As it appears on the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) website: “The mission of the Federal Bureau of Prisons is to maintain secure, safe, and humane correctional institution for individuals placed in the custody of the U.S. Attorney General; to develop and operate correctional programs that seek a balanced application of the concepts of punishment, deterrence, incapacitation and rehabilitation; and provide, primarily through the National Institute of Corrections, assistance to state and local correction agencies.” Given that these prisons maintain a secure, safe and humane environment for those that are custody, doesn’t rule out suicide attempts. Suicides can occur in both general population and segregation. Between general population suicide attempts and solitary confinement suicide attempts, solitary confinement has the highest rating overall. According to Don Thompson, “In 2005, forty-­four prisoners in the California prison system committed suicide, 70% of whom were in solitary confinement”, which shows that more than half suicides occur in solitary confinement. Suicide thoughts are lead from lack of human contact along with human communication, similar to psychological distress. Inmates can get treated when a staff member sees signs that can lead to suicide attempt. The facility can assign a social worker to a suicide risk prisoner to help them get through their suicide emotions. A suicide risk offender being released out in to society and not receiving on going treatment can raise the chances on committing suicide while not being in

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