Last October we wrote at length about the case of John Thompson, who spent 14 years on death row before he was exonerated–based on evidence that had been purposefully withheld by prosecutors in the office of New Orleans DA Harry Connick Sr. A Louisiana jury found the DA’s office culpable for Thompson’s ordeal (which included coming […]
A noteworthy piece on solitary confinement appeared yesterday as a guest column in the New Jersey Star-Ledger. The column is by George Hunsinger, who teaches at Princeton Theological Seminary and is the founder of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT). It is noteworthy, too, that NRCAT, which previously focused its work largely on U.S.-sanctioned torture abroad […]
A piece by California inmate and jailhouse legal advisor Richard Gilliam appeared earlier this month on “The Informant,” KALW public radio’s excellent blog on “Cops, Courts, and Communities in the Bay Area.” Gilliam describes the complex system for filing grievances within California prisons–a system in which complaints against prison administration are handled by none other than the prison administration. […]
Tewhan “Massacre” Butler was leader of a New Jersey chapter of the Bloods street gang. Convicted in 2006 under federal racketeering statutes, he is currently serving time in solitary confinement at the U.S. Penitentiary at Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Live from Lockdown is Butler’s blog, created by RaiseUp Media. In his welcoming statement on the blog, Butler writes: “I’m currently serving a […]
The title above is the title of the article we wrote for Al Jazeera English, which ran as a feature today on their web site. It begins as follows; please use the link at the end to read the full piece. The spectre of Bradley Manning lying naked and alone in a tiny cell at the Quantico Marine Base, […]
The solitary confinement of Army Pfc. Bradley Manning in a Marine Corps Brig in Quantico, Virginia, is now approaching its tenth month. In addition to sporadic on-the-ground protests, a growing chorus of media and activist voices is calling for an end to Manning’s appalling treatment. Implicitly or explicitly, they link the accused WikiLeaker’s fate to that of tens […]
Guest Post by Jennifer Wedekind Editor’s Note: Jennifer Wedekind is a journalist whose work has appeared in Mother Jones, In These Times, and the Multinational Monitor. She is a 2011 JD Candidate at Georgetown Law. The public comment period for the PREA regulations extends through April 4, 2011. To submit a comment or read the […]
While serving time at the Louisiana State Penitentiary, Lane Nelson spent 18 years as a staff writer and later managing editor for the nation’s most renowned prison magazine, The Angolite. He covered a wide range of subjects, including Angola’s longtermer population and hepatitis-C behind bars, and he interviewed and profiled several men just days before their executions. Nelson himself […]
Cañon City, Colorado, is the Solitary Confinement Capital of the Western World. Now, a Small Group Lawyers, Legislators, and Activists Is Challenging This All-American Form of Torture. Part 2: Showdown at the Colorado State Penitentiary Time passes slowly for the 750 prisoners at the Colorado State Penitentiary (CSP) on the outskirts of Cañon City. For […]