A new report from UCLA dinged Chino, Solano, Chuckwalla and Mule Creek as the 4 prisons with the most signs of unconstitutional conditions during the pandemic.
By SUSAN HAIGH Associated Press
July 1, 2021
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HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) Gov. Ned Lamont on Wednesday vetoed a bill that limited when isolated confinement or seclusion is used in Connecticut prisons, saying he supports the bill’s intent but wants to make sure inmates and staff are safe.
Instead, the Democrat directed the Department of Correction commissioner, in an executive order, to increase “out of cell time” for all incarcerated individuals, including those in “restrictive status.” He said that will happen “well before the effective dates of the bill,” which would have taken effect a year from now.
“I am not signing this legislation because, as written, it puts the safety of incarcerated persons and correction employees at substantial risk,” Lamont wrote in his veto message. He noted the bill puts “unreasonable and dangerous limits” on the use of restraints, among other measures, that could place people at risk.
Published July 01. 2021 12:15AM
By SUSAN HAIGH
HARTFORD (AP) Gov. Ned Lamont on Wednesday vetoed a bill that limited when isolated confinement or seclusion is used in Connecticut prisons, saying he supports the bill s intent but wants to make sure inmates and staff are safe.
Instead, the Democrat directed the Department of Correction commissioner, in an executive order, to increase “out of cell time” for all incarcerated individuals, including those in “restrictive status.” He said that will happen “well before the effective dates of the bill,” which would have taken effect a year from now.
“I am not signing this legislation because, as written, it puts the safety of incarcerated persons and correction employees at substantial risk,” Lamont wrote in his veto message. He noted the bill puts “unreasonable and dangerous limits” on the use of restraints, among other measures, that could place people at risk.
Ending solitary confinement will protect lives and also save money
SB 1059 s Fiscal Note is drastically inflated
This year the PROTECT Act, otherwise known as Senate Bill 1059, offers Connecticut an opportunity to address conditions in Connecticut state prisons and jails that the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture condemns as “a State-sanctioned policy aimed at purposefully inflicting severe pain… which may well amount to torture.” If passed, the PROTECT Act would end solitary confinement by guaranteeing minimum time out of cell, banning abusive restraints, ensuring access to pro-social communication, increasing correctional accountability, and supporting the mental health of correctional officers.