Solitary Confinement Is Horrible and Inhumane. Why Is It Still Legal?

Justin Peters, crime correspondent and blogger for Slate, writes about the excruciating toll solitary confinement can have on a person’s mental and physical state. The article also discusses reasons why solitary confinement is still legal despite growing opinion that it violates international human rights laws. The piece was written shortly after Herman Wallace, who spent more than four decades in solitary confinement, died of liver cancer upon being released.

Justin Peters, crime correspondent and blogger for Slate, writes about the excruciating toll solitary confinement can have on a person’s mental and physical state. The article also discusses reasons why solitary confinement is still legal despite growing opinion that it violates international human rights laws. The piece was written shortly after Herman Wallace, who spent more than four decades in solitary confinement, died of liver cancer upon being released. Wallace’s case continues to spark discussion about the ethics of solitary confinement as it pertains to criminal justice in US prisons.

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