Senate Hearing on Solitary Confinement Highlights Need for Prison Oversight

Inmates and staff in restrictive housing units stand to benefit most from establishment of Ombudsman, risk analysis

Washington, DC --   The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the use of solitary confinement in federal facilities Tuesday morning, including an extensive look at the roughly eight percent of individuals in restrictive housing under the Bureau of Prisons on any given day this year. 

The Bureau of Prisons uses solitary or restrictive housing arrangements for incarcerated people for reasons that include inmate and staff safety, as well as disciplinary reasons. However, even relatively short stays in solitary confinement can exacerbate mental health problems, increase behavioral health crises, and lead to unintended consequences for both staff and incarcerated people, including an increased risk of abuse and neglect. 

The Senate hearing follows a House Committee on Oversight and Accountability meeting last week that advanced the Federal Prison Oversight Act to the House floor by a bipartisan vote of 41-1. The bill, H.R. 3019, would establish an Ombudsman within the DOJ who would be tasked with handling complaints from incarcerated individuals, corrections staff, and others, as well as providing for risk-based assessments of federal prison facilities. Advocates argue the bill would be especially useful for addressing concerns with solitary and other restrictive housing arrangements. A companion bill in the Senate, S. 1401, has not yet advanced.

“Solitary confinement is a traumatic and destabilizing experience. Its use in federal facilities should be narrowly tailored to those cases where there is absolutely no other way to ensure the safety of staff and incarcerated people,”  JC Hendrickson, Federal Affairs Director for Justice Action Network, “We’re pleased to see the Senate Judiciary Committee continuing to shine a spotlight on this issue. Solitary confinement, and prison conditions more generally, need more attention by Congress, and that is why we urge the committee to take up Senator Ossoff’s bipartisan Federal Prison Oversight Act. The Judiciary Committee’s concern about solitary confinement is well placed, and this bill will provide even more insight into policies implemented behind prison walls.”