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Solitary & other forms of isolated confinement are inhumane, counterproductive, & unsafe. People in isolated confinement in NYS spend 22-24 hrs. a day locked in a cell the size of an elevator—alone or with 1 other person. Legislators should pass #HALTsolitary to end this torture.
People in isolated confinement in New York State may be permitted only 1-2 hours to exercise alone in a cage, they do not receive any meaningful programs or therapy, and often cannot make phone calls.
The sensory deprivation, lack of normal human interaction, and extreme idleness in isolated confinement can lead to intense suffering and severe psychological damage.
Locking people in isolated confinement fails to address the underlying causes of problematic behavior, and often exacerbates that behavior as people deteriorate psychologically, physically, and socially.
Over 30% of all suicides in New York prisons from 2014-2016 took place in solitary confinement, though only 6% to 8% of all people in prison were in solitary.
Hundreds of people are released directly from extreme isolation to the outside community each year in New York State; very few receive any educational, rehabilitative programming, or transitional services to help them prepare for their return to society, increasing recidivism.
Isolated confinement serves no legitimate purpose; states that reduced their use of isolation in prisons by up to 75% saw significant decreases in prison violence.
Most people sent to isolation in New York prisons spend months or years there; some individuals have been in solitary confinement in New York’s prisons for more than two decades (upwards of 30 years).
The entire United Nations General Assembly has denounced solitary exceeding 15 days. In 2015, the US government voted for, and the entire United Nations adopted, the Mandela Rules, which prohibit any person from being held in solitary beyond 15 days.
Colorado has implemented a 15-day limit on solitary confinement and reduced the number of people in solitary from 1,500 to 18. New York currently places no limit on the total time a person can spend in isolated confinement.
Thousands of people are in isolated confinement in New York State prisons and hundreds more in local jails each day, and tens of thousands each year.
Those locked in solitary confinement in New York are disproportionately people of color. Black people represent about 13% of all people in New York State, but represent 50% of those incarcerated in NYS, and 60% of people held in long-term solitary confinement units in NY.
Young people and people with mental illness are disproportionately likely to be put in isolation. More than 800 people on the New York State Office of Mental Health caseload remain in solitary confinement each day.
Pregnant women, new mothers, elderly people, and people with severe physical disabilities incarcerated in New York State are held in isolation. Members of the LGBTI community are often placed in solitary purportedly for their own protection.
New York legislators are now considering a bill that restricts the use of isolated confinement & creates alternative therapeutic & rehabilitative confinement options. Read a summary of the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term (HALT) Solitary Confinement Act: nycaic.org/legislation/
New York is closer than ever to passing the #HALTsolitary Confinement Act and we must continue to make our voices heard!
Please call NY Senate Leader Stewart-Cousins & Assembly Speaker Heastie & tell them: "I’m a New Yorker & I’m calling to thank you for your ongoing support for the HALT Solitary Confinement Act (S1623/A2500) & to urge you to pass it AS IS so we can finally end this torture." 
Find your New York legislators here: openstates.org/find_your_legi…, and contact them to urge them vote for the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term (HALT) Solitary Confinement Act (A.2500 / S.1623).
Go to the rally for #HALTsolitary in front of Governor Cuomo's NYC office to urge him to pass the HALT Solitary Confinement Act S. 1623 / A.2500. Thursday Feb. 28 at 11 am to 12 pm. More info here: facebook.com/events/2191811…
Follow the New York Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement on Twitter (@NYCAIC) and Facebook (facebook.com/NYCAIC/) for updates on the HALT Solitary Confinement Act and learn how you can support their advocacy and get involved. NYCAIC.org #HALTsolitary
