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Northern California jails use kinder approach to solitary confinement

The idea is to limit solitary confinement to violent inmates.

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Three Northern California county jails are trying a new approach to solitary confinement.

The idea is to limit solitary confinement to violent inmates. The new policy also encourages jailers to use low-cost incentives to reward good behavior, like giving them opportunity to listen to the radio or watch a movie.

The techniques are being used in response to inmate lawsuits.

Officials say the changes have dramatically reduced the number of inmates in isolation and the length of time they stay there.

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Experts say it could serve as a national model for reducing the use of isolation they say is dehumanizing and can worsen mental illness.

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Credit: AP/AP Photo/Ben Margot

In this photo taken on Monday, Dec. 16, 2019, an inmate looks out a window in his solitary confinement cel at the Main Jail in San Jose, Calif. Several California counties are drastically restricting their use of solitary confinement with policies that experts say could be national models. While some jurisdictions elsewhere are banning isolation for youthful offenders, pregnant women or those with pre-existing mental health diagnoses, the California counties' broader approach of generally limiting its use to inmates who engage in continued violent behavior has brought dramatic reductions in both the number of inmates in isolation and the length of time they stay there. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

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