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

Toyia Dockery, a transgender woman in North Carolina, faced an inescapable dilemma while incarcerated: risk assault from officers and other incarcerated people, or face solitary confinement disguised as protection. Dockery, who is housed in a men’s prison in like most other incarcerated trans women, is ten times more likely to experience sexual assault compared to her cisgender counterparts. “I grieved about it, I grieved about it, I grieved about it. And nothing was never, never, never, never done,” Dockery said, referencing her repeated attempts to file complaints about the abuse she faced. Solitary confinement is all too common for incarcerated trans people, with 90% of trans respondents to one survey stating they spent time in solitary. WUNC News

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In his ruling against the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) for neglecting the medical needs of incarcerated people, U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton compared the treatment by the BOP to that of a Soviet Gulag. Dalton called outside medical referrals “a coveted but nearly inaccessible refuge for which only prisoners near death qualify for admission.” One incarcerated man, David Blakeney, sought compassionate release from federal custody after receiving a colon cancer diagnosis, but was denied due to  BOP claims of adequate in-custody care. This care consisted of Blakeney being sent to solitary confinement, where he was strapped to a bed using four-point restraints as his condition worsened. The Appeal

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Nathaniel Davis Jr. died in solitary confinement at an Iowa City jail after his worsening withdrawal symptoms were ignored by staff. According to a lawsuit filed by his estate, the medical provider who saw Davis Jr. “spent only minutes at his cell door, never touching him and never taking his vital signs.” The lawsuit also alleges that officers stood over and did not attempt to help Davis Jr. for several minutes when they found him convulsing on the floor of his cell. KCRG

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Raiko Lopez Morffi was placed in solitary confinement after he and other men were assaulted and tear gassed by officers at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Florida known as Alligator Alcatraz. Guards allegedly attacked Morffi and others because they requested to make phone calls when access was cut off for a full day. Morffi still had injuries nearly a week after the attack. Other reports describe serious abuse in the solitary units at Alligator Alcatraz, including “being held in stress positions with hands and feet tightly shackled for hours at a time, in direct sunlight with no access to food or water.” Truthout

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Migrant children housed at Children’s Village shelter in Westchester County, New York, report spending days isolated inside a “red room.” One teen held in the red room stated he was not allowed to bathe, only given bread to eat, and repeatedly restrained and beaten by the facility’s special security team. Federal officials rehoused the children held at the shelter when an audit revealed widespread abuse earlier this year. CNN 

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Pablo David Reyes Ponce filed a federal civil rights petition over being held primarily in solitary confinement during his two years in ICE custody at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania. In his petition, Ponce explained the has suffered severe mental health issues, including “hallucinations, disorientation, severe despair, exacerbation of trauma, and a heightened suicide risk” as a result of his time in solitary. Altoona Mirror

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A mother and son with a pending asylum application previously accepted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services were detained, separated, and sent to ICE facilities. The son was only a few months away from graduating high school, and had committed to playing soccer at a Chicago-based junior college the following fall. At just 18, he has already spent time in solitary confinement while in ICE detention. Raw Story

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Individuals detained in ICE facilities hold jobs essential to the operation of these facilities, from cleaning units and cooking meals to providing hygiene services and assisting disabled residents. While ICE contractors reported more than $2 billion in revenue for 2025, the individuals working within these facilities make as little as $1 per day. When organizers tried to protest these conditions, they were sent to solitary confinement. In an interview, organizer Pedro Figueroa described efforts he and others are taking to continue raising awareness through groundbreaking strikes. Inquest

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Algis Baliunas, who served as a prosecutor in the Chicago State’s Attorney’s Office, once thought harsh prison sentences were common sense, but he is reportedly beginning to view the carceral system differently after seeing people he prosecuted spend decades behind bars. Baliunas remembers a case in which a man was sentenced to 200 years’ incarceration. Now, five decades later, that man has spent much of his time in solitary confinement and is asking for clemency. Baliunas is serving as an advisor on the clemency petition and representing the man in parole proceedings. New York Times

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On a phone call from a Florida prison, Kimberly C. was excitedly talking with her family about getting transferred to a facility closer to where her mom was on hospice care. She told them she was ready to “blow this joint” and leave the facility she was currently in. A few hours later, she was escorted to solitary confinement for 44 days while under investigation for the language she used on the call. Officials said she was a security risk due to the language used, despite Kimberly never having any prior incidents in the 22 years she had been incarcerated. Prison Journalism Project

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Nick Yarris was convicted and sentenced to death at age 21 and spent 22 years in solitary confinement on Pennsylvania’s death row before being exonerated through DNA testing and released. Now, a Broadway play starring Adrien Brody and Tessa Thompson is telling Yarris’s story. The Fear of 13 debuted on April 15, and is structured to show how both trauma and joy surface in non-linear patterns. “Nick’s case stands as a powerful example of just how hard it is to free and exonerate an innocent person,” one of Yarris’s defense attorneys said. “I hope audiences leave understanding the urgent need for systemic reforms.” The Innocence Project

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Action Alert:

The Society of Professional Journalism and Prison Journalism Project are hosting a virtual ceremony on Tuesday, April 28, at 8pm Eastern Time to announce the winners of the third annual Stillwater Awards. Named after the first prison to have a newspaper, these awards honor work by incarcerated writers across a variety of genres, with a focus on reported work. Registration via Eventbrite is free, but required for attendance. Eventbrite

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