House Bill 1599
PROHIBITING SOLITARY CONFINEMENT FOR VULNERABLE POPULATIONS
House Bill 1599 Bill Information
Description: HB 1599 would provide new regulations for the use of solitary confinement in correctional institutions and facilities. Key provisions include defining solitary confinement, establishing procedures and conditions for placing inmates in solitary confinement, prohibiting the use of solitary confinement for members of vulnerable populations, requiring daily evaluations and reviews, implementing alternative disciplinary measures, and creating an independent investigator and a hearing review board to monitor compliance and address misconduct. The bill would also require the Department of Corrections to develop policies, procedures, and regulations to administer these new solitary confinement provisions.
PA Justice Alliance Member Positions & Feedback
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Read more:
News: Solitary Confinement Is Torture. The Time to Ban It in Pennsylvania Is Long Past Due (Bucks County Beacon, 3/31/2024)
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Solitary confinement deprives incarcerated people of normal human interaction, access to reading materials, and contributes to a variety of harmful physiological and psychological reactions, such as hallucinations, depression, anxiety, and paranoia.
HB 1599 would greatly limit, and in many cases, prohibit, the use of solitary confinement for vulnerable populations. There is no benefit to placing someone in isolation, and the excessive use of solitary confinement in our correctional facilities is cruel and unnecessary.
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