When offenders leave prison after having served their sentence, the hope is that they will have learned from the experience and make a serious effort to reintegrate into the community. Ideally, they will return to their families and finish their education or gain employment. The last thing that is intended is that they exit prison more likely to offend than before.
Unfortunately, the overuse of solitary confinement in the Texas correctional system increases crime among released inmates and wastes taxpayer dollars.
When used appropriately, solitary confinement can be a useful tool for correctional officers. When inmates become dangerous to others or are in danger themselves, it can be necessary to temporarily separate them from the group. This gives them an opportunity to cool down or for the danger to dissipate.
However, solitary has become drastically overused by the Texas system. In other states, inmates in solitary confinement account for 1 or 2 percent of the incarcerated population. In Texas they account for 4.4 percent, many of them with mental disorders.
[For more of this story, written by Dianna Muldrow, go to http://rightoncrime.com/2015/0...onfinement-in-texas/]
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