Solitary

The UN considers more than 15 days in solitary to be torture due to the intense distress and resulting mental health problems. But in the US, where incarceration rates per capita are the highest in the world, the practice is widespread. There are an estimated 60,000 inmates in solitary across America, but the numbers have risen since the pandemic, as prisoners are put in isolation cells to quarantine. Hilary Andersson investigates the impact on prisoners.