Sec. 2. Findings
285 words·~1 min read·
/bill/119/s/2477/is/section-2A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Congress finds that— the use of solitary confinement as a carceral practice causes devastating harm and constitutes a form of torture; solitary confinement of any length of time, measured in days or even hours, can cause self-mutilation, suicide, heart disease, anxiety, depression, psychosis, mental and physical deterioration, and a significantly heightened risk of death; over 120,000 people are estimated to be in solitary confinement on any given day in Federal, State, local, and immigration detention facilities; solitary confinement and other forms of restrictive housing and practices are disproportionately inflicted on Black, Latinx, Native, and other people of color, as well as transgender and gender nonconforming people, people with mental health needs, and young people; survivors of solitary confinement often carry significant trauma and other physical and psychological harm with them for the rest of their lives; solitary confinement has directly caused the deaths of far too many people and has increased violence and harm in prisons, detention facilities, and communities; solitary confinement derives from, and helps perpetuate, a horrific and brutal incarceration system that is rooted in racism and focuses on extreme punishment and abuse, rather than on providing opportunities for growth, healing, redemption, and transformation; the United States is an outlier among advanced democracies in the use of solitary confinement; evidence shows that out-of-cell, prosocial engagement and programming increase safety, well-being, and reentry outcomes; solitary confinement is expensive, and cost analyses at the Federal and State levels indicate that the elimination of solitary confinement would save taxpayers billions of dollars; and solitary confinement is costly to taxpayers, does not make communities safer, jeopardizes the safety of incarcerated people and correctional staff, constitutes inhumane and degrading treatment, and has no place in a civilized society.