Does ‘Solitary Confinement’ In Mass. Prisons Still Exist?

Berkshire County Sheriff Tom Bowler was on the radio show with us for his biyearly interview on Wednesday and I was asking him about "the hole" or solitary confinement - does Massachusetts still use this method of correction?

There are many perceptions of life in prison - only receiving bread and water for food and drink was used as a threat by my mother many times growing up. The "hole" is another.

What is solitary confinement?

Solitary confinement, also called restrictive housing in Massachusetts, means keeping prisoners alone in a cell for most of the day. Over the years, it has changed a lot in the state's prisons and jails, moving away from the super harsh versions shown in movies like The Shawshank Redemption, where inmates rot in dark holes with no sunlight, no showers, and barely any food or human contact. Those movie scenes make it look like endless torture, but reforms have made it less extreme, though it's still tough and harmful.

Solitary confinement's beginning

Back in the 1800s, solitary started in the U.S., including Massachusetts, based on Quaker ideas that isolation would help prisoners reflect and change. Prisons like Charlestown State Prison used it widely, often for long periods with little light or hygiene, leading to mental breakdowns. -wgbh.org

Changes

Things began shifting in the 2010s. In 2012, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that long solitary without fair hearings was illegal, pushing for better due process.

The big change came in 2018 with the Criminal Justice Reform Act. It defined restrictive housing as being locked up more than 22 hours a day and added rules: no solitary for pregnant women, people with serious mental illness, or youth; regular reviews every 90 days; and access to three showers a week, visits, phone calls, meals like everyone else, and even radio or TV. After 60 days, prisoners get education or rehab programs.

In 2021, the Department of Correction promised to phase out restrictive housing over three years and close the DDU, following a report that called it inhumane. But challenges remain - lawsuits in 2022 and 2024 say prisons use "alternative" units with almost 22 hours in cells to dodge rules, causing anxiety and depression.

Today, it's not like movies' no-sunlight nightmares. Prisoners get basics like hygiene and some contact, aiming for safety over punishment. Some folks still push for total bans, saying even short stints hurt mental health. Massachusetts has improved, but the fight for humane treatment continues.