Over 215 organizations have sent a letter dated June 11 to Gov. Kathy Hochul and State Prison Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III, demanding State prisons immediately rescind what the organizations say is the “illegal” suspension of the HALT Solitary Confinement Law and instead fully implement the law.

 

Anisah Sabur, a Bronx resident, national coordinator of the “Unlock the Box” campaign, and a survivor of solitary confinement in New York, said HALT was previously enacted some years ago by a supermajority of both houses of the State legislature and signed into law by the governor.

 

Sabur said the letter also urges enactment of legislation that creates meaningful pathways of release from, and fundamentally change the environment within, New York’s prisons, including laws relating to elder parole, fair & timely parole, “second look,” earned time, the Marvin Mayfield Act, Rights Behind Bars, and ending qualified immunity.

 

Letter signatories include the Bronx Defenders, NYS NAACP, NYS Defenders Association, The Legal Aid Society, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Vera Institute of Justice, and more. Sabur said that 55 State legislators also recently urged NYS Department of Corrections & Community Supervision (DOCCS) to end what they say is the “illegal” suspension and fully implement HALT. Sabur said The Legal Aid Society also filed a lawsuit, challenging the suspension.

 

Jerome Wright, co-director of the #HALTsolitary campaign, said he knows from personal experience that solitary confinement is “torture.” He said, “The social isolation wreaks havoc on people’s minds and bodies, has led to numerous people dying, and makes everyone less safe. I also know from running and creating programs [with] real alternatives, involving full days of out-of-cell programming and human engagement, dramatically reduce violence and better protect people’s health.”

 

He added, “The HALT Solitary Law follows that well-documented evidence, but since HALT went into effect in 2022, DOCCS has systematically violated the law by failing to implement real alternatives and continuing to lock people in solitary by another name for months and years. Guards tried to stop the HALT Solitary Law through the democratic legislative process, the courts, and by outright ignoring the law. But the public, a supermajority of elected leaders, and the courts have all said New York State will not continue this torturous and dangerous practice. Incarcerated people’s lives matter too.”

 

Meanwhile, Harvey Rosenthal, chief executive officer of the Alliance for Rights and Recovery, a coalition of New Yorkers with major mental illnesses and trauma histories, said there was perhaps no greater pain than that of experiencing the mental health trauma of solitary confinement. “A supermajority of New York lawmakers recognized how torturous solitary is and how it worsens safety for everyone,” he said.

 

“DOCCS must immediately rescind their unlawful order suspending the HALT Solitary Law and must fully implement the HALT Law, including true alternatives proven to reduce violence and better protect people’s health. New York’s prisons must not continue to deny our most vulnerable New Yorkers more humane alternatives to this soul-crushing and life-taking trauma and torture.”

 

Norwood News reached out to both the governor’s office and DOCCS for comment. The governor’s office referred us to DOCCS and a DOCCS spokesperson said, “Due to the 22-day illegal strike and ongoing state of emergency system wide, the programming elements of the HALT Act were paused for the safety of both the incarcerated and our staff. The Commissioner has conducted periodic reviews of each facility to assess feasibility and safety of resuming programming, and several facilities have been able to resume HALT programming.”

 

The spokesperson added, “We expect more to follow in the near future. We continue to conduct safety and operational reviews on a facility-by-facility basis in order to ensure that when programming recommences, it’s done so in manner that prioritizes the safety and security of those in our care, our staff, and the community.  Correction Law §2(23) specifically allows DOCCS to suspend the programming elements of the segregated confinement rules when there is an emergency or exigent circumstances. Additionally, and separate from the provisions of Correction Law §2(23), Correction Law Sec. 137, allows the Commissioner to exercise his authority to suspend the program provisions of the HALT Act.”

 

A copy of the letter, which we have been informed was sent June 11 to both the governor and the DOCCS commissioner can be read in full here. A prior letter also requesting calling for the suspension of HALT to be reversed was sent on May 27 to the DOCCS commissioner and can be read here.