Message from the Illinois Senator Dick Durbin

Fellow Illinoisan,

Solitary confinement is overused in federal prisons and immigration detention facilities—leading to enduring physical and mental harm and higher rates of recidivism. For those that have been subjected to this severe punishment, the nightmare does not end with the isolation period. It’s past time to eliminate the abuse of solitary confinement and its stain on our nation.

In 2012, I convened the first-ever congressional hearing on solitary confinement, helping to lead a national conversation on solitary confinement as it relates to criminal justice reform. I held another hearing in 2014, examining the fiscal, public safety, and human rights consequences of solitary confinement. Following these events, the Obama Administration took some important steps to reduce the use of restricted housing in the federal prison system, including banning the use of solitary confinement for low-level offenses and juveniles. Unfortunately, many of those steps were reversed during the Trump Administration, and the number of individuals held in restricted housing in the federal prison system once again increased.

This week, the Senate Judiciary Committee—which I chair—held another hearing on this issue examining the frequent abuse of solitary confinement in federal custody and its effect on members of vulnerable populations and those with mental illness. One of the witnesses—Nicole Davis—explained how she was placed in segregated housing for a total of approximately a year during her time in prison. For part of that period, she was in solitary confinement due to overcrowding in the prison. She also was placed in solitary for participating in a three-way call between her sister and the hospital where her daughter was hospitalized. Ms. Davis faced mental health challenges as a result of her experiences.

Unbelievable stories like Nicole’s are why I have reintroduced the Solitary Confinement Reform Act with Senator Coons and the Restricting Solitary Confinement in Immigration Detention Act with Senator Schatz. In the last five years alone, ICE has placed people in solitary confinement more than 14,000 times, with an average duration of 27 days. These pieces of legislation will help maintain a more humane and safe environment by limiting the use of solitary confinement by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), U.S. Marshals Service, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“Individuals who violate our criminal and immigration laws must be held accountable, but they can be detained in a humane manner that does not violate their fundamental human rights. We in Congress can’t just blame it on the Executive Branch. We must look in the mirror and acknowledge our obligation to eliminate the abuse of solitary confinement.”

– U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee

Some might try to justify the overreliance on solitary confinement, stating that it is necessary to maintain a safe environment in a prison or immigration detention facility. However, we have a moral responsibility to prevent unnecessary and devastating harm to incarcerated individuals. Research shows that solitary confinement does not create safer prisons or detention facilities. We must do more to ensure that those who enter our systems do not leave worse than when they came, so that they have a second chance to become productive members of our society.

Sincerely,

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL)