New this week from Solitary Watch: 

In the latest edition of Voices from Solitary, Malika Henderson, an incarcerated abolitionist from North Philadelphia, writes about the devastating isolation, undernutrition, and dehumanization she experienced in solitary confinement at SCI Muncy. Henderson is the lead plaintiff in the groundbreaking class action lawsuit, Hammod vs. PADOC, challenging the constitutionality of solitary confinement within the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PADOC). She notes, “These instances showed me the power of changing things when we come together.” Solitary Watch

---

This week’s pick of news and commentary about solitary confinement:

An article written by Solitary Watch’s Katie Rose Quandt exposes the direct relationship between solitary confinement and high rates of prison suicide. The tragic deaths of Markwhan Kitcher-Tucker and Dean Hoffman highlight the deadly reality of solitary confinement for those suffering from mental illness. Both men’s stories are just two of many instances where correctional staff have failed incarcerated individuals, discontinuing vital psychiatric medicine orders and implementing unnecessary punitive measures. Although the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2013 instructs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to compile data on prison deaths, many institutions fail to accurately collect data or purposefully lower death counts. Yet even existing data shows highly disproportionate rates of suicide in solitary. The resistance to passing strong anti-solitary laws at the state and federal level, including by Democratic executives, prolongs the use of solitary confinement and its link to prison suicides. The Progressive

---

Hawaii Governor Josh Green signed a bill reforming the use of solitary confinement in the state. Act 292 permits the use of solitary only if the incarcerated individual is reasonably believed to be an immediate harm to themselves or another person The act also requires that individuals have access to food, water, medical care, legal counsel, knowledge of the process for returning to the general prison population, and a hearing within 24 hours of confinement. Aloha State Daily | However, some critics of the bill say it does not go far enough because it fails to place any limits on how long an individual can stay in solitary. Honolulu Civil Beat 

---

Julie Mikela Winters, a transgender woman, was put into solitary confinement after a Columbia County, Oregon, jail refused to house her with male or female incarcerated people. A federal judge ordered her release to the Northwest Regional Re-Entry Center last Tuesday, stating it’s a “much better place to be temporarily than solitary in Columbia County.” The Oregonian 

---

The Wisconsin Department of Corrections has been slow to follow through on its promise to add necessary cooling systems to seven prisons after record-breaking heat waves and a successful civil lawsuit by Paul Ammerman, who lost consciousness from heat-related illness while in solitary confinement. Air temperature inside prisons can be 10 degrees hotter than outside, and incarcerated people in solitary confinement, like Ammerman, experience far higher temperatures than the general prison population due to lack of proper ventilation in solitary cells.  As climate change worsens, questions and debates over the minimum required cooling measures are becoming more urgent. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 

---

Erick Holmes, a decorated Green Beret and veteran of two wars, suffers from service-connected mental illness and a traumatic brain injury. Despite his condition, Holmes is being held in solitary confinement in a Utah county jail, and continually transferred between different facilities with no consistent mental health treatment, and has experienced repeated care denials, failed community placements, and undertrained staff. Several studies show that veterans with complex neurological trauma need a specialized approach to care, and Holmes’s treatment at these facilities violates federal protections for disabled veterans. Park City News

---

The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) issued a report investigating the use of physical restraints by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). The OIG found that restraints were often applied for extended periods without appropriate interventions, resulting in serious injuries, including amputation and nerve damage. The investigation also revealed a lack of clear guidelines on necessary medical checks for restrained individuals and insufficient documentation of these checks. The report recommends limiting the duration of restraint, providing clearer definitions and guidelines for restraint types, and conducting video recordings of restraint checks. Forbes 

---

A new Journal of Criminal Justice article addresses current debates surrounding conflicting definitions of solitary confinement, ambiguous procedures for sorting incarcerated people into restrictive units, challenges identifying and describing the harms of solitary, and the lack of attention paid to the experiences of staff working in solitary units. The article argues that a better investigation into these debates will generate new theoretical and policy insights with greater potential to delegitimize the use of this harmful practice. Journal of Criminal Justice

---

In an opinion piece, prison traumatologist and decarceration expert Mayram Henderson-Uloho writes about the aftermath following the discontinuation of her Decarceration Program at the Orleans Justice Center (OJC). The program offered a space for hope and healing, which rehumanized those suffering from the trauma of incarceration, lowered suicide attempts, and decreased violence. Ten of Henderson-Uloho’s young students escaped from the solitary confinement unit at OJC and were labeled as monsters by the media and politicians. Henderson-Uloho urges prisons, “Let’s stop giving them reasons to run. Let’s give them every reason to return.” The Lens (NOLA)

---

Action Alerts: 

Thursday, July 17th, is the International Day of Justice 2025, and the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison Reform Coalition will be hosting an event from 4 pm to 8 pm at the East Baton Rouge Library (7711 Goodwood Blvd., Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70806). The event will focus on the theme of this year, “We Are All Justice-Impacted: The Power of the Arts,” by using the arts to amplify awareness of the pervasiveness of mass incarceration. Louisiana Impacted Solitary Survivor’s Council (ISSC), a group focused on supporting individuals affected by solitary confinement and advocating for reform, will host a Solitary Confinement Film Festival as part of the event. ISSC will stream the documentary “Torture in Our Name” by the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT), which is available to watch online. More information is available at this site.

---

Disability Rights California (DRC) will be holding a two-day symposium at Cal State Fullerton from July 25 to 26, 2025. The End Solitary Symposium: “Breaking Free of the Isolation and Building the Movement” will include panel discussions and a screening of “The Strike,” a feature documentary recounting the lives of the California men who endured decades of solitary confinement and organized the largest hunger strike in U.S. history. Further information and registration is available on the Disability Rights California website. 

---

Get this weekly roundup in your mail every Wednesday, covering the past seven days of solitary confinement news and commentary. Subscribe today.

The work we do is made possible by your support. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation—large or small—today.