Silent Injustice: Solitary Confinement in Virginia

Imagine being alone and locked up enclosed in a steel door cage the size of a parking spot, deprived of any meaningful human contact or sensory stimulation for 22 to 23 hours a day, every day for weeks, months, maybe years, to the point where you lose your grasp on reality. Even worse, imagine suffering from mental illness and as a result, one is unable to “behave their way out” of such isolating conditions, which in turn makes them suffer more. The harmful effects of solitary confinement have long been recognized in the United States.  Since 1990, the number of persons held in solitary confinement exploded. Nationally, it is estimated that between 80,000 and 100,000 prisoners are held in some type of solitary confinement. Across Virginia, over 800 prisoners are in solitary confinement.