Constitutional Issues Surrounding Prison Segregation and Solitary Confinement

• In Event: Safety and the Consequences of Imprisonment

Abstract

Prison officials use segregation as a management tool to control inmate behavior and to make prisons safer places to work. Courts generally have taken a “hands-off” view of prison management systems, but some elements of segregation and solitary confinement have come under court scrutiny. This paper looks at U.S. Court of Appeals’ interpretation of the U.S. Supreme Court cases Sandin v. Conner (1995) and Wilkinson v. Austin (2005) to determine when segregation is permissible and when it is unconstitutional. Specifically, the paper analyzes lower court cases that have interpreted the Supreme Court’s “atypical and significant deprivation” test as announced in Sandin and as applied in Wilkinson. Legal and policy outcomes are addressed.

Authors

• Claire Angelique R. I. Nolasco, Texas A&M University-San Antonio

• Michael Vaughn, Sam Houston State University