North America
Canada: close to ordinary violence
Testimonial
North America
Mental health
Violence
Social ties
Canada
Olivia* supports a close schizophrenic friend through his life sentence. She recounts the time spent helping him and understanding his illness. She reveals the shortcomings of the penal system as well as the violence perpetrated by prison staff.
North America
Minors
Material conditions
United States
Children, some as young as 15, incarcerated at notorious Angola prison, which has reputation for brutality and violence.
North America
Discipline
Material conditions
United States
A prison in the US state of Minnesota was placed into lockdown on Sunday after dozens of inmates refused to return to their cells.
Canada: camping holidays near the prison
Testimonial
Outward Bond
Analysis
Thematic paper
North America
Europe
Social ties
Rehabilitation
Maintaining relationships is often seen more as a means than an end: its status as a basic human right has been erased, and instead the prison service has assigned it a role in reintegration. What are the consequences for prisoners and for their loved ones?
North America
Activities
Social ties
United States
Missouri Prisons have unleashed a new form of cruelty—banning books sent by friends and family to incarcerated individuals. This is more than just a policy, it’s an attack on freedom and human dignity.
North America
Mental health
Torture
United States
The research is clear – it’s bad for prison violence, terrible for inmates and poses increased risks for society.
North America
Minors
Facilities
United States
California’s three remaining youth prisons closed their reinforced steel doors for good today, marking the demise of what was once the nation’s largest network of youth prisons.
North America
Justice
Facilities
United States
The state cut incarceration in half, while crime plummeted.
North America
Activities
Rehabilitation
Work
United States
Art helped soften Dwayne Burns’ rage while he was inside, as it did for many others. Now outside, he runs a program that helps inmates earn income from their talent.
USA: disaster in prison
Interview
North America
Work
United States
Problems of substance
Analysis
Thematic paper
North America
Europe
Health
Mental health
Drugs
Material conditions
Many people are living with addiction in prison. They face great difficulties. Drugs are an integral part of the overcrowded and unsanitary prison systems, which increases the risks inherent in drug use. How is drug addiction experienced behind bars?
Canada: bringing law into prisons
Interview
North America
Women
Health
Mental health
Material conditions
Overcrowding
Canada
Violence, acts of protest, prison conditions, justice reforms: find out what is new about prisons and justice in this country. Prison Insider monitors the press on a regular basis.
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USA: the Holmesburg prison experiments
Interview
North America
Women
LGBTQI
Long-term prisoners
Justice
Health
Mental health
Material conditions
Torture
United States
Violence, acts of protest, prison conditions, justice reforms: find out what is new about prisons and justice in this country. Prison Insider monitors the press on a regular basis.
Canada: "a drop in the ocean"
Interview
Coronavirus
North America
Health
Facilities
Overcrowding
Canada
“Since prisons are such confined and notoriously unsanitary places, vaccinating the prisoners was an urgent matter. At the very least, vaccinating the oldest and most vulnerable among them was a top priority.”
USA: inside the kids’ cells
Interview
North America
Minors
Material conditions
United States
They are 60,000. Who? The minors incarcerated in America’s prisons. Richard Ross is a photographer. His ‘Juvenile in Justice’ work has been giving them a voice for the past two decades.
USA: "This is the real Miami"
Insights
Focus
United States: meeting my hero
Testimonial
Sunny Jacobs: Life Outside
Testimonial
North America
Death penalty
Social ties
Rehabilitation
Work
United States
How is life after release? Sunny Jacobs was sentenced to death and spent seventeen years in detention for a crime she did not commit. She tells Prison Insider about the many challenges one faces upon release. She now works actively towards the abolition of the death penalty.
Sunny Jacobs: Life Beyond
Testimonial
North America
Mental health
Death penalty
Religion
United States
How can you escape prison with your mind? Sunny Jacobs was sentenced to death and spent seventeen years in detention for a crime she did not commit. She tells Prison Insider how yoga, meditation and prayer helped her find freedom behind prison walls.
Sunny Jacobs: Life Inside
Testimonial
North America
Mental health
Material conditions
Death penalty
Activities
United States
What is daily life on death row like? Sunny Jacobs was sentenced to death and spent seventeen years in detention for a crime she did not commit. She tells Prison Insider about her detention conditions and the burden of complete isolation.