The psychological effects of solitary confinement are far more serious than most people understand. I have spent years reading stories, reports, court records, and firsthand accounts from inside correctional facilities, and one thing has become painfully clear to me: isolation is not just a management tool. When it is used carelessly, excessively, or as punishment without real oversight, it can become one of the most damaging forms of prison isolation abuse. Most people hear

Correctional officer misconduct is one of those subjects most people only hear about after something has gone terribly wrong. A beating. A sexual abuse case. A falsified report. A federal indictment. A sentence handed down years after the original incident took place. By then, the public usually sees only the end of the story. What I have learned from looking closely at correctional institutions is that the real story often starts much earlier — inside a housing unit, behind