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Human Rights Group Submits Testimony to Congressional Hearing on the Consequences of Solitary Confinement
June 19, 2012, Washington, D.C. – Today, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) submitted written testimony to the first-ever Congressional hearing on solitary confinement, “Reassessing Solitary Confinement: The Human Rights, Fiscal, and Public Safety Consequences.” CCR’s testimony describes the deplorable conditions of solitary confinement in U.S. prisons, its destructive effects and its disproportionate use against prisoners of color and vulnerable and unpopular prisoners. CCR argues that prolonged solitary confinement violates Eighth Amendment prohibitions on cruel and unusual punishment, and that it constitutes torture in violation of international human rights law.
CCR’s testimony reads, in part:
Click here to read CCR Statement to Congress on Solitary Confinement.
The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Founded in 1966 by attorneys who represented civil rights movements in the South, CCR is a non-profit legal and educational organization committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.
