美国国家公共电台 NPR New York's Solitary Confinement Overhaul Gets Pushback From Union

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Here in the United States, some prison guards are defending the use of solitary 1 confinement 2. It's been controversial for centuries. As long ago as 1824, the Marquis de Lafayette, hero of the American Revolution, was shocked to learn Americans used isolation 3 cells. He'd once been confined in solitary and considered it torture.

In recent years, Louisiana inmates 5 have sued over isolation cells. Connecticut and Minnesota are debating restrictions 6 on them. But New York correction officers are now saying why they need solitary confinement. Here's North Country Public Radio's Brian Mann.

BRIAN MANN, BYLINE 7: In 2015, New York announced that it had reached a landmark 8 settlement with the New York Civil Liberties Union which sued over New York's aggressive use of solitary confinement to discipline inmates. Five Mualimm-ak is one of the activists 9 who pushed for the changes. He spent five years in solitary and says it left him broken.

FIVE MUALIMM-AK: When people say you survived solitary, it's like nobody survives that.

MANN: Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat 10, agreed to a multi-year process phasing in limits on the time inmates spend in isolation and improving conditions there. But in recent weeks, the powerful state correctional officer union has begun publicizing violent incidents where inmates assault prison staff.

MIKE POWERS: Creating dire 11 circumstances and unhealthy environments.

MANN: Union head Mike Powers argues the reforms are partly to blame. Without the threat of solitary confinement, he says, officers have less control. He cites state prison data showing the number of assaults on officers by inmates rose by a third over the last decade.

POWERS: It's basically given the inmate 4 population a more brazen 12 attitude and recognizing that the consequences aren't what they used to be.

MANN: Prison reform advocates disagree. They point out the increase in violence took place before these reforms were implemented 13. Some corrections experts say when guards use alternative methods of discipline, there are often fewer disruptions. Thomas Mailey, spokesman for New York's prison system, says violence against guards actually fell in 2016 as these reforms were being implemented.

THOMAS MAILEY: Millions of dollars have been invested in additional security staffing, technology upgrades and training, which we are pleased has resulted in a dramatic decline in assaults and injuries to our staff.

MANN: State officials say the effort to scale back the use of solitary confinement will go forward despite prison guard concerns. The New York Civil Liberties Union says the number of men and women held in isolation here has already dropped by about 25 percent. The Federal Bureau of Prisons and California's massive state system are implementing 14 similar reforms.

But even those pushing for these changes say solitary confinement isn't going away in American prisons. A study released by Yale Law School estimated that on any given day, between 80,000 and 100,000 inmates are held in isolation cells nationwide. For NPR News, I'm Brian Mann.