NCJ Number
140852
Date Published
1989
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This paper reviews the Chief Inspector of Prisons' reports on the conditions under which segregated inmates live in British prisons.
Abstract
Rule 43 of the Prison Rules is used to remove vulnerable inmates from the general prison population for their own protection as well as potentially disruptive inmates for "good order and discipline." Approximately 2 percent of inmates are on Rule 43 at any one time. Most of them are on the rule for their own protection, and the number under such protection is increasing. On June 30, 1988, 2,011 male inmates were on Rule 43 for their own protection. In 1984, the Chief Inspector of Prisons reviewed the conditions of segregation of inmates under Rule 43 and found that such inmates tend to be held in the worst conditions and experience the worst regimes of all inmates. The report expressed concern that an inmate's decision to seek protection under Rule 43 be made freely and that it be a reasonable decision. He did not support the view of some that inmates segregated for their own protection should be subjected to poor conditions so as to encourage inmates either not to seek or to leave protective segregation. Some of the conditions typically found were taunting by other inmates, ill-fitting clothing, and spoiled food. The Chief Inspector proposed new procedures to safeguard the rights and conditions of inmates on Rule 43. He recommended a procedure to ensure that inmates seek protection voluntarily and proposed that segregated inmates have opportunities for work; exercise; and education; as well as such amenities as radios, cell hobbies, and books. Chief Inspector's reports for specific prisons are included.