[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 176 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 176
To amend title 18, United States Code, to impose conditions on the use
of solitary confinement in Federal prisons, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 4, 2021
Mrs. Watson Coleman introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary
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A BILL
To amend title 18, United States Code, to impose conditions on the use
of solitary confinement in Federal prisons, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Restricting the Use of Solitary
Confinement Act''.
SEC. 2. SOLITARY CONFINEMENT.
(a) In General.--Chapter 301 of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 4015. Solitary confinement
``(a) In General.--Any placement of an inmate in solitary
confinement shall comply with the following:
``(1) An inmate shall not be placed in solitary confinement
unless there is reasonable cause to believe that--
``(A) the inmate would create a substantial risk of
immediate serious harm to another, as evidenced by
recent threats or conduct; and
``(B) a less restrictive intervention would be
insufficient to reduce this risk.
The correctional facility shall bear the burden of establishing
this standard by clear and convincing evidence before any
agency review. An inmate who would create a substantial risk of
immediate serious harm to self, or who create a substantial
risk of immediate serious harm to another because of a medical
reason shall be placed in an appropriate medical facility.
``(2) An inmate shall not be placed in solitary confinement
for non-disciplinary reasons.
``(3) An inmate shall not be placed in solitary confinement
before receiving a personal and comprehensive medical and
mental health examination conducted by a clinician. A
preliminary examination shall be conducted by a member of the
medical staff within 12 hours before confinement and the
clinical examination shall be conducted within 48 hours of
confinement.
``(4) An inmate shall only be held in solitary confinement
pursuant to initial procedures and reviews which provide
timely, fair and meaningful opportunities for the inmate to
contest the confinement in such an administrative proceeding as
the Director shall establish. These procedures shall include--
``(A) the right to an initial hearing within 72
hours of placement and a review every 15 days
thereafter, in the absence of exceptional
circumstances, unavoidable delays, or reasonable
postponements;
``(B) the right to appear at the hearing;
``(C) the right to be represented at the hearing
pursuant to the Defender Services Program of the
Department of Justice;
``(D) an independent hearing officer; and
``(E) a written statement of reasons for the
decision made at the hearing.
``(5) The final decision to place an inmate in solitary
confinement shall be made by the administrator of the
correctional facility where that inmate is held.
``(6) An inmate shall not be placed or retained in solitary
confinement if the administrator determines that the inmate no
longer meets the standard for the confinement.
``(7) A clinician shall evaluate each inmate placed in
solitary confinement on a daily basis, in a confidential
setting outside of the cell whenever possible, to determine
whether the inmate is a vulnerable person.
``(8) An inmate shall not be placed in solitary confinement
for more than 15 consecutive days, or for more than 20 days
during any 60-day period.
``(9) An inmate held in solitary confinement shall not be
denied access to food, water, medical care including emergency
medical care, or any other basic necessity.
``(10) An inmate shall not be directly released from
solitary confinement to the community during the final 180 days
of the inmate's term of incarceration, unless it is necessary
for the safety of the inmate, staff, other inmates, or the
public.
``(11) An inmate who is a vulnerable person described in
subparagraph (B), (E), or (F) of subsection (b)(3), who would
otherwise be placed in solitary confinement, shall alternately
be placed in an appropriate medical or other unit as determined
by the administrator.
``(b) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Clinician.--The term `clinician' means a Federal or
State licensed physician, except that for purposes of mental
health evaluations, the term shall include a Federal or State
licensed psychiatrist or psychologist, or an advanced practice
nurse or clinical nurse specialist with a specialty in
psychiatric nursing.
``(2) Solitary confinement.--The term `solitary
confinement' means confinement of an inmate in a correctional
facility, pursuant to disciplinary, administrative, protective,
investigative, medical, or other classification, in a cell or
similarly confined holding or living space, alone or with other
inmates, for approximately 20 hours or more per day, with
severely restricted activity, movement, and social interaction.
``(3) Vulnerable person.--The term `vulnerable person'
means any inmate who--
``(A) is 25 years of age or younger;
``(B) is 65 years of age or older;
``(C) has a disability based on a mental illness, a
history of psychiatric hospitalization, or has recently
exhibited conduct, including serious self-mutilation,
indicating the need for further observation or
evaluation to determine the presence of mental illness;
``(D) has a developmental disability;
``(E) has a serious medical condition which cannot
effectively be treated in isolated confinement;
``(F) is pregnant, is in the postpartum period, or
has recently suffered a miscarriage or terminated a
pregnancy;
``(G) has a significant auditory or visual
impairment; or
``(H) is perceived to be lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, or intersex.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for such chapter is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``4015. Solitary confinement.''.
SEC. 3. REPORT.
Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Bureau of Prisons shall prepare, in consultation with other
entities including human rights advocates, mental health experts,
academics, and other professionals in the correction and rehabilitation
area, and thereafter submit a report to the Committees on the Judiciary
of the House of Representatives and of the Senate with recommendations
to reduce the use of solitary confinement in Federal prisons to near
zero over the 10-year period beginning on the date of the submission of
the report.
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