Tag Archives: solitary confinement
Death in Solitary
Russell Johnson’s sister warned officials that nearly three years in solitary confinement had broken him. His suicide in isolation two months later points to compounded crises inside Texas prisons.
Russell Johnson’s sister warned officials that nearly three years in solitary confinement had broken him. His suicide in isolation two months later points to ...Read More
Texas Prisons Lead the Nation in Long-Term Solitary Confinement
Nearly a third of Texas prisoners in restrictive housing have been there for six years or longer, according to a new national survey.
The growing bipartisan consensus around solitary confinement — that it’s inhumane and overused across the criminal justice system — has led to its sharp d...Read More
State of Texas: Who We Kill
According to data collected by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, an unsurprising trend has emerged among death row inmates, the majority of whom are bla...Read More
The Moral Indefensibility of Death Row
Alex Hannaford’s cover story this month shows an alarming correlation between trauma that happens to adolescent boys, the biological damage it does to their b...Read More
Letters from Death Row: The Biology of Trauma
New studies show that trauma biologically alters the brains of young boys in ways that affect their adult behavior.
Texas executes more of its citizens—almost all of them men—than any other state. New studies show that trauma biologically alters the brains of young boys i...Read More
Letters from Death Row: Faith Behind Bars
An informal Observer survey finds complex religious beliefs among death row inmates.
Solitary confinement forces many inmates to do a lot of soul-seeking, but despite the misconceptions, not all death row inmates turn to religion for solace. In ...Read More
Letters from Death Row: Alone on the Inside
In an informal Observer survey, death row inmates describe a world of extreme isolation, where mental illness is both cause and symptom.
The Observer found that prisoners often choose a life of permanent isolation, refusing to leave their cages. It’s a catch-22: Mental illness can lead inmates ...Read More
Observer Radio Episode 44: One Man’s Survivalist Tale From the Texas Pines
Patrick Michels tells the tale of Jeffrey Holliman who survived for a year in the woods near Nacadogches County by ransacking his neighbors. ...Read More
Prison Guard Union Calls on Texas to Curtail Solitary Confinement on Death Row
Texas’ largest prison guard union is calling for a partial end to the controversial use of solitary confinement on death row. ...Read More
