Mother Jones on the child abuse the DOJ is investigating at a juvenile detention center in Ohio: An Ohio juvenile correctional facility placed a child, who was on suicide watch and psychiatric medication, in solitary confinement for 1,964 hours between April and September of last year, according to the Department of Justice. Referred to as K.R. in court documents, the boys longest uninterrupted stretch of solitary confinement lasted about 19 days. And his experience isnt unique: Four juvenile correctional facilities in Ohio imposed almost 60,000 hours of solitary confinement on 229 boys with mental-health needs in the second half of 2013, according to the government agency. These details, and other harrowing accounts, are included in a March 12 lawsuit filed by the the Justice Department against the state of Ohio, Republican Gov. John Kasich, and others, on the basis that the states excessive use of solitary confinement among children with mental-health issues is unconstitutional. The lawsuit names four state juvenile correctional facilities that are engaging in confinement practices that will cause irreparable harm to these youth, according to the agency. The way in which Ohio uses seclusion to punish youth with mental health needs victimizes one of the most vulnerable groups in our society, Jocelyn Samuels, acting assistant attorney general for the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division, said in a March statement. -Erika
Posted on: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 21:30:01 +0000
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