New York enacts law to limit solitary confinement

Advocates rallied for the HALT Solitary Act in 2019. Photo courtesy of the #HALTsolitary campaign

By David Brand

Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation Thursday to significantly curtail the use of solitary confinement in New York jails and prisons, following decades of advocacy by activists and the formerly incarcerated.

The Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Act, known as HALT Solitary, caps the duration that someone can spend in isolation at 15 days, limits the offenses that can result in solitary confinement and makes vulnerable individuals exempt.

Cuomo cited the mental health consequences of prolonged solitary confinement and said the new law will ensure “proven, humane” policies in state lockups.

"Generations of incarcerated men and women have been subjected to inhumane punishment in segregated confinement with little to no human interaction for extended periods of time and many experience emotional and physical trauma that can last for years," Cuomo said.

The new legislation mandates that people held in solitary confinement have access to programs, therapy and support services and spend at least six hours a day spent outside a cell.

The measure was sponsored for several years by Queens Assemblymember Jeffrion Aubrey, who referenced the United Nations’ characterization of solitary confinement as torture. 

“The HALT act will not eliminate this practice, but will be regulated in a way which we think is conducive to the long-term betterment of both those who are incarcerated as well as the communities they return to,” Aubry said. “HALT will improve conditions of confinement, and create more humane and effective alternatives to confinement.”

The effort to reduce the use of solitary confinement gained momentum in recent year with a boost from the #HALTSolitary campaign, which campaigned relentlessly for the measure.

“This is a people’s victory,” said Jose Saldana, director of the Release Aging People in Prison Campaign. “For far too long, countless people have needlessly suffered and died in solitary confinement in New York State prisons and jails.”

Saldana described the 18 “barbaric” months he spent in solitary confinement and said the punishment disproportionately impacts people of color, who make up the vast majority of the prison population. He called on state lawmakers to pass other justice reform measures, including parole reform.

“Let’s continue to make 2021 an historic year for justice in New York State,” he said.