On Tuesday, 10 California inmates succeeded in stopping the decades-long use of indefinite solitary confinement in the state's prison system. In a landmark settlement to a class-action suit they filed in 2012, California must now institute widespread reforms—which advocates hope will be a catalyst for change across the nation.
As part of the settlement, prison officials can isolate an inmate only if they commit a serious or violent infraction. Any perceived rule violation must be then proven in a hearing. Even those who do end up housed in the so-called Secure Housing Unit (SHU) will have different living quarters. The "high-security but nonisolation environment" will allow prisoners movement without restraints, the same amount of time away from their cells as the general prison population, access to educational and recreational programs, and physical contact with their visitors. ...