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| Wisconsin joins push to curb solitary confinement |
| By lacrossetribune.com- Dee J. Hall |
| Published: 08/24/2015 |
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Wisconsin has made a “culture shift” in its use of solitary confinement in prisons, eliminating it as punishment for minor rule infractions and cutting the time inmates spend in isolation for more serious offenses, Department of Corrections officials say. In most cases, the state prison system will no longer discipline inmates for self-harm or suicide attempts by sentencing them to time in solitary confinement. And mitigating factors such as mental illness will be considered in meting out punishment, two top DOC officials said in an interview granted as part of a legal settlement with the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism. The changes in so-called restrictive status housing at DOC come as powerful voices ranging from Democratic President Barack Obama to conservative billionaire Charles Koch are calling for less incarceration and more rehabilitation. Republican Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has, for most of his political career, gone in the opposite direction, sponsoring tough-on-crime measures such as the “truth-in-sentencing” law enacted in 1999, refusing to issue pardons, ending an early-release program and severely curtailing parole. Read More. |
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