Bag of Snakes is an occasional email series that highlights different aspects of the criminal punishment system in Arkansas. Learn more here. Use these links to catch up on Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
Solitary confinement is in need of national attention and in even greater need of change. In the last email, we established a clear understanding of solitary confinement, and this week we will move into a conversation on reform in solitary confinement. In order to get specific about the change we want to see, we have to get specific about the problem. In this email, we will look at the “why” of solitary confinement use in the Arkansas prisons. This will include policies and reasons people are sent to solitary as well as a look at the difficulty of exiting solitary confinement once it has been assigned.
Important terms used in this email:
Restrictive housing is the term for solitary confinement generally used by correctional systems, including the Arkansas Department of Corrections.
Punitive (or disciplinary) segregation is a form of confinement, also referred to as “the hole,” which may be applied in Arkansas prisons “when an individual has been found guilty of violating departmental rules and regulation.
Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC) is the governing body responsible for all Arkansas prisons.
Punitive Segregation
Punitive segregation is a regular practice in Arkansas prisons. Solitary confinement is used to punish a wide variety of behaviors and actions. We have included a chart below to break down some of the infraction types. Despite what many people think or what supporters of solitary confinement might say, only a very small amount of infractions that lead to punitive segregation are related to violence or threats of violence.
Fewer than 1 in 10 infractions that led to solitary confinement during 2019-2020 were the result of violent acts or threats. Instead, the ADC policy gives prison authorities a large amount of freedom in deciding what behaviors deserve solitary confinement. This could include anything from unnecessary noise, lying to staff, or possessing a cell phone. Additionally, while the initial assignment to punitive segregation is 30 days, the stay may be extended with proper authorization with no policy setting firm limits on the maximum amount of time a person can be kept in solitary.
What Leads to Punitive Segregation?
Below is a breakdown of each infraction category:
Conduct Toward Staff includes refusing a direct verbal order to vacate an area, failure to obey an order, insolence to staff, and lying to staff.
Use of Force includes battery against another incarcerated person, battery against staff, and a written or verbal threat.
Substance Abuse includes manufacturing or possession of a controlled substance and refusing to take a substance test.
Other Types of Contraband include possession of a cell phone, possession of unauthorized clothing, possession/introduction of weapons, possession of explosives, or any combustible substance.
Out of Assigned Place includes an unexcused absence from work or school.
Disruptive Behavior includes banding together/demonstration that creates a disruption, creating an unnecessary noise, destruction or unauthorized use of state or another’s property, provoking or agitating a fight, indecent exposure, masturbation in others' presence, throwing bodily fluids or excrement, not keeping oneself or cell according to regulation, sex with another person (includes consensual), tattooing, piercing, self-mutilation to change the appearance of oneself (excludes suicidal behavior).
Step-Down Programs
Not only is solitary confinement overused as a punishment in Arkansas prisons, but the length of stay is also of major concern. This in large part has to do with the difficulty of exiting solitary confinement. In Arkansas prisons, there are essentially two ways to be released from restrictive housing. The first is to complete the length of the sentence in solitary confinement and the second is by completing a transition program, frequently called a step-down program. With either, the challenge is to avoid additional disciplinary “tickets” while in segregation, which would add time to one’s length of stay.
There are two such programs — the Step-down Program and the Incentive Program Level System, which is for those housed at Varner Super Max. The concept behind the two programs sounds sensible: Participants are rewarded for good behavior, gradually earn more privileges and out-of-cell time, and upon graduation, return to the general population.
One requirement is watching an hour per day of programming about prosocial behavior via an in-cell television and completing worksheet assignments based on the video; there is no out-of-cell group programming. This process sounds straightforward at first glance, however, it can actually make it harder for people to leave solitary. In 2018, only seven people in Arkansas prisons exited solitary confinement through the use of a step-down program.
A challenging aspect of the two programs is the length of each "step," which can last from 30 to 120 days each. Additionally, time can be extended in solitary for “poor behavior.” As discussed in a previous email, the mental health challenges that often occur with solitary confinement can make adherence to prison rules challenging. The ADC expects people who are likely already traumatized by prolonged isolation to walk a long gauntlet to achieve liberty from very trying conditions. A person may struggle to think rationally and make the best choices. For example, they may be too depressed to keep their cell or hygiene according to regulation; they may be so filled with rage that they angrily kick the door, bang on the wall, or scream, spit, or worse. Those actions are met with more time in isolation, instead of being seen as a reaction to a demoralizing situation (or one induced by SMI) that would challenge even the best of us. For some, being in a step-down program may amount to a Catch-22 cycle of unrealistic expectations, recurring misbehavior, and more time in segregation.
Difficulty Getting Out
Credits: This edition of Bag of Snakes was written by Claire White and Nancy Dockter. Logo design is by Tanya Hollifield. Editing and layout by Zachary Crow. DecARcerate depends on the generosity of people like you. Please consider making a one-time or recurring donation to support our ongoing work.