© 2025 WGCU News
PBS and NPR for Southwest Florida
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

In Federal Prisons, Solitary Confinement Actually Means Sharing

Menard Correctional Center in Chester, Illinois. The prison was first built in 1878. It has 143 double cells in its segregation unit. (Joe Shapiro/NPR)
Menard Correctional Center in Chester, Illinois. The prison was first built in 1878. It has 143 double cells in its segregation unit. (Joe Shapiro/NPR)

A new joint investigation finds that more than 80 percent of federal inmates in so-called solitary confinement are actually forced to share a cell with another, often violent, inmate. Marshall Project reporter Christie Thompson and NPR’s Joe Shapiro speak to Here & Now’s Peter O’Dowd about the conditions and the sometimes lethal repercussions.

Guests

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Trusted by over 30,000 local subscribers

Local News, Right Sized for Your Morning

Quick briefs when you are busy, deeper explainers when it matters, delivered early morning and curated by WGCU editors.

  • Environment
  • Local politics
  • Health
  • And more

Free and local. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.