Judge Approves Plan To Reduce Solitary Confinement In NY

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) - A federal judge has approved a sweeping plan to reduce solitary confinement in New York state prisons.

Judge Shira Scheindlin approved what she called the "historic settlement'' on Thursday. She said she hopes it becomes a model for other states.

Scheindlin said the class action settlement will greatly reduce the frequency, duration and severity of solitary confinement.

As WCBS 880's Rich Lamb reported, Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the judge's approval of the plan initiates a fundamental overhaul of solitary confinement in New York state.

"The process, the duration, what offenses make people vulnerable to it, as well as the conditions, can now be implemented," Lieberman said.

She said the agreement ensures there will be more access to radios, reading material, recreation and therapeutic services.

"This settlement provides for us to monitor implementation," Lieberman said. "You know, it's one thing to come up with an abstract opinion. It's something else, in particular in the prisons, it's something else altogether to make sure that they actually happen."

The settlement was the culmination of a 2011 case that began when an inmate sued the state. He said he was unconstitutionally subjected to solitary confinement for three years for improperly maintaining certain legal documents.

In December, Scheindlin preliminarily approved the settlement. On Thursday, she wrote that the settlement will produce "more humane and more just'' conditions in state prisons.

The state has about 4,000 inmates in solitary at any time.

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