Limit the Use of Solitary Confinement

 

The purpose of this bill is to limit the amount of time a prisoner can be held in solitary confinement to 30 days when

not dealing with murder or severe assault. This is necessary to lessen abuse in the prison system and aid in

rehabilitation of convicted criminals.

 

Minnesota currently uses a tiered system for assigning solitary confinement length, which allows up to 90 days for

assault without major injury, and up to 60 days just for possession of contraband. Solitary confinement is known to

cause severe mental harm. Deprivation of human contact causes prisoners to feel anxiety, depression, paranoia, and even

aggression. This system moves prisoners backwards in the reform and rehabilitation process which it is supposed to help

them with.

The Mandela Rules (also known as the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners), adopted by the United

Nations, state that solitary confinement should never be used other than as a last resort, and never for more than 15

days. Furthermore, solitary confinement costs the government much more than normal confinement, and limiting the use of

it will save money. The prolonged use of solitary confinement when not absolutely necessary (in cases of murder or

assault) contradicts the goals of the prison system and causes more harm than good.

 

 

“Prisoner” will be defined as any incarcerated person under the care of the Minnesota prison system

“Solitary confinement” will be defined as the isolation of a prisoner in a cell separated from others with extremely

limited human interaction for 22-24 hours of the day.

“Severe assault” will be defined as any assault which causes great bodily harm, ex. Physical disfigurement, extended

loss of consciousness, and assault with a dangerous weapon.

 

This bill calls for no specific funding, as prisoners now not in solitary for more than 30 days will return to their

normal housing, which has funding directed towards it already. Solitary confinement is actually more expensive than

normal confinement, as it requires much more staffing.

 

Reports of the misuse of solitary confinement would be investigated by the Department of Corrections’ Office of Special

Investigations (OSI), and continued offenses could result in the shutdown of the violating facility.

 

January 1st 2027