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Solitary Confinement

While the costs borne by individuals forced into solitary confinement are immeasurable, the practice is also far more expensive than other forms of incarceration, as well as alternatives to incarceration. Beginning with construction and extending through operation and reentry, the costs of solitary confinement substantially outpace those of typical incarceration. Estimates suggest that housing an individual in solitary confinement can cost up to three times more than incarceration in the general prison population. Additionally, there are many indirect, or hidden, costs of solitary confinement, including medical care and re-incarceration.

Projects SW Fact Sheets

The High Cost of Solitary Confinement: New Fact Sheet Reveals the Economic Toll, from Construction to Incarceration and Beyond

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by Jean Casella

November 3, 2025

News & Features

Pregnant Women in ICE Detention Face Isolation, Shackling, and Medical Neglect…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Sara Vogel

October 29, 2025

News & Features

Ending Solitary Confinement Will Save Minds and Lives

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by Juan Moreno Haines

October 28, 2025

News & Features

The Shape-Shifting Face of Solitary Confinement: A Prison Hospital’s Dark Truth

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by Kwaneta Harris

October 14, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Solitary Rates in ICE Detention Skyrocket Under Trump…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Samantha Santoro

September 24, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

ICE Reopens Prisons and Detention Centers Previously Closed Due to Abuse and Neglect…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Emily Engel

September 17, 2025

Voices from Solitary

Voices from Solitary: An Elusive Victory

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by Voices from Solitary

August 7, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

ICE Detainees Deported to El Salvador Report Dark Isolation Cells, Beatings, and Rape… and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Isadora Evers

August 6, 2025

Projects SW Fact Sheets

New Fact Sheet on Solitary Confinement and Prison Activism Documents How Incarcerated People Are Punished for Defending Their Rights

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by Jean Casella

August 1, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Joe Rogan Left “Speechless” by Survivor’s Account of Solitary…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Lena Massengale

July 30, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Hunger Strikes Expose Brutal Conditions at Two State Prisons…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Surina Venkat

July 23, 2025

Voices from Solitary

Voices from Solitary: Inside the Hole

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by Voices from Solitary

July 22, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Solitary Linked to Epidemic of Prison Suicides… and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Isadora Evers

July 16, 2025

News & Features

How Solitary Confinement Kills

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by Katie Rose Quandt

July 10, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Trump’s Policies Throw Lives of  Incarcerated People into Chaos…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Surina Venkat

July 9, 2025

News & Features

Lockdowns, Violence, and “Barbaric Conditions” in a Brooklyn Federal Jail Known for Its Famous Detainees

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by Katie Rose Quandt and Maeve Brennan

June 30, 2025

News & Features

Beyond The Rainbow: Remembering Our Most Forgotten

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by Kwaneta Harris

June 26, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Hunger Strike in California Prisons Protests New Restrictions…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Surina Venkat

June 25, 2025

News & Features

After Decades in Solitary, a Sliver of Light

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by Edward Tie

June 24, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Corrections Leaders Say Solitary Does Not Make Prisons Safer…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Lena Massengale

June 18, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Immigrants Detained Nationwide Face Isolation and Squalor…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Sara Vogel

June 11, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Suicides in North Carolina Prisons Linked to Use of Solitary…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Francisco Rodriguez

June 5, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Detained Migrants Face Indefinite Solitary in Texas…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Francisco Rodriguez

May 28, 2025

Voices from Solitary

Voices from Solitary: Crawling Out of the Darkness, Part 2

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by Voices from Solitary

May 23, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Migrants Face Inhumane Conditions, Abuse, and Solitary at El Paso ICE Facility…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Francisco Rodriguez

May 21, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Trump Plans to Restore Alcatraz…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Francisco Rodriguez

May 7, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Trump DOJ Cuts Funding for Prison Rape Prevention and Survivors…and Other News on Solitary Confinement this Week

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by Kilhah St Fort

April 30, 2025

Seven Days in Solitary

Pope Francis Condemned Solitary Confinement as Torture…and Other News on Solitary Confinement This Week

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by Djamilah Diabate

April 23, 2025

Voices from Solitary

Voices from Solitary: Imagine This

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by Voices from Solitary

April 17, 2025

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