TIME TO END SOLITARY CONFINEMENT IN VIRGINIA

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Virginia State Capitol 3

We hope you are well and congratulate you on your candidacy for statewide office in Virginia! We represent the Virginia Coalition on Solitary Confinement, a growing coalition of advocacy organizations and concerned Virginia citizens and taxpayers working to make our Commonwealth criminal justice system more just and equitable. As you may be aware, Virginia currently allows the use of Solitary Confinement. We are contacting you in the hope that you will acknowledge the moral imperative to end the prolonged use of cruel and inhumane Solitary Confinement (over 15 days is considered torture) in prisons in Virginia.

Solitary confinement is the isolation of a person in a jail or prison cell for all or nearly all of the day with little environmental stimulation or opportunity for human interaction. Studies have shown that the isolating conditions of solitary confinement can cause serious and lifelong psychological harm and trauma and often is described as torture by those who have endured it.

Solitary confinement is widespread and overused in Virginia, and far too many people are placed in solitary, often on flimsy or false pretenses, or because they are exhibiting symptoms of mental illness. According to the Virginia Department of Corrections’ own numbers, more than 7,000 people incarcerated in Virginia prisons were placed in solitary confinement units known as “restrictive housing” at some point between July 1, 2018, and June 30, 2019. That number does not include people placed in solitary confinement conditions through other types of housing units in Virginia prisons, let alone Virginia jails or juvenile detention facilities. As a result, solitary confinement in Virginia is largely shielded from oversight and accountability.

We call on you to speak out during your campaign and commit to work with the Solitary Confinement Coalition to end this inhumane practice in Virginia prisons, jails and juvenile correctional facilities. Solitary confinement should be prohibited, except in rare circumstances — such as when a prisoner poses a real and imminent threat of physical harm — and only for as little time as necessary. This legislation will make the Commonwealth safer and more just by demanding that Virginia prisons and jails consider humane alternatives before implementing a dehumanizing and barbaric practice that is known to exacerbate and even cause serious mental illness.

What Other States Have Done to Address the Cost and Cruelty! Here’s a summary of some cost savings from reducing solitary confinement:

Mississippi was able to close a unit that once held up to 1,000 people in isolation, saving $8 million a year. Solitary confinement costs $102 per day compared to $42 a day for inmates in the general population. Most importantly, violence within Mississippi’s prisons and the recidivism rate upon release are both down, with violence dropping nearly 70 percent.

39 Other states (other than California) are recognizing that, at 2 to 3 times the cost of housing in the general jail or prison population, solitary confinement provides a poor return on investment.

Estimate from Arizona put the annual cost of holding a prisoner in solitary confinement at approximately $50,000, and is three times greater than in a general population facility; and Ohio compared to about $20,000 for the average prisoner.

In Maryland, the average cost of housing a prisoner in segregation is three times greater than in a general population facility; in Ohio and Connecticut it is twice as high; and in Texas the costs are 45% greater.

For additional information and research documenting the rationale for ending solitary confinement, click here and here.

Your campaign statements on justice reform have shown us that you could be a powerful ally in the fight against solitary confinement. We are calling on you, as a candidate for statewide office, to demonstrate leadership and commitment for creating a just Commonwealth by pledging to end this inhumane practice in Virginia prisons, jails and juvenile correctional facilities. Solitary confinement should be prohibited except in rare circumstances in Virginia! We hope that you will consider publicly opposing solitary confinement and joining the fight against this practice in our Commonwealth. If you wish to discuss this issue, or other social reforms needed in Virginia, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Mr. David Smith--Chair, Virginia Coalition on Solitary Confinement