Solitary Confinement: The Hole Truth

In this week’s episode, we interview Kim Romero, the mother of Nick Romero (a prison inmate and PenPals.Buzz member in Shelton, WA). Nick has been locked up in a solitary confinement cell for over eight months…and won’t be getting released anytime soon. His story is all too common. Administrators of jails and prisons around the country will tell you that they’re using solitary confinement less and less often for punishment. On the surface, this sounds great. But what they won’t tell you is that over 125,000 men and women are currently locked up in isolation and segregation cells, with zero human interaction, no outdoor time, and no opportunity to participate in any of the programs or services the prison offers to the general population inmates. In Washington jails, many inmates are put into solitary confinement cells merely because they have a physical or mental disability, or because the prison needs to fill the bed space. These restrictive lockdowns and the lack of human interaction has been considered “torture” by the United Nations, and many believe it’s also a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Physicians worldwide will attest to the physical and mental harm this isolation can cause. As a case in point, just in the state of Washington alone, 176 people have attempted suicide while locked alone in one of these solitary cells. 14 died. Learn Kim and Nick’s story and hear how they have been affected by this cruel and unusual (non) punishment.