VI. Conditions of Confinement: Isolation and Related Issues

Isolated Confinement

International norms prohibit subjecting children to "closed or solitary confinement or any other punishment that may compromise the physical or mental health of the juvenile concerned."[533]New York state regulations permit isolated confinement, known as "room confinement" or "lock-up," only when a child "constitutes serious and evident danger to himself or others."[534]

The facilities' monthly reports record only the relatively few instances in which room confinement is imposed because a girl poses a danger to herself or others.[535]In these official records, Tryon reported no use of isolated confinement for the period between January 2004 and January 2006.[536] For the same period, Lansing reported an average of 2 instances per month of room confinement for periods of less than an hour. Isolation for more than an hour occurred an average of 6 times per month, ranging between 0 and 19 times per month.[537]

Yet girls in both facilities described incidents of being confined to their rooms for long periods of time for seemingly arbitrarily reasons or because staff found it more convenient.[538] Girls complained most of isolation in TryonReceptionCenter, where all girls to be confined in an OCFS secure or non-secure facility are initially sent for two weeks for evaluation.[539] Although OCFS literature states that girls "receive thorough assessments e.g. medical, educational, psychological and mental health" in addition to formal orientation during the two week period,[540] girls held at Tryon Reception Center complained that little time was spent assessing their needs or providing them with services; rather, the bulk of their time was spent sitting alone in their cells. They reported that during the day they were not allowed to lie down on their bunks.

Such isolation also occurs in the regular housing units of Tryon and Lansing. Interviews and grievance logs suggest that girls view doing chores as a privilege, because it represents an opportunity to leave their rooms.[541] Girls complain that staff sometimes deny them the opportunity to do their chores, or start girls on their chores late, resulting in more time spent by the girls in their rooms.

Some girls confined at Tryon complained of confinement in Tryon's "mudroom." Felicia H., 17 at the time of her incarceration, described the "mudroom," which exists in each unit at Tryon:

You come in the unit, and to the right there's a big area with rooms off it, and to the left that's where we live, and in the middle there's a hallway with a booth in the middle, toward the outside. That's the mudroom. The mudroom is a regular hallway, it's small, when you get in trouble, they say, "Go to the mudroom, stand with your hands behind your back." You have to stand still and look straight forward.[542]

Asked how long she was made to stand in the mudroom, Felicia H. replied:

Three hours or so. I was mad about everything, I was always mad. Sometimes staff is in there with you, sometimes not. If they're confronting you, there's staff. Or they'll just come in and out to check on you.[543]

Alicia K. described her experience in the mudroom:

It's a little hall between the two sides of the unit. There is nothing in there. You stand, you can't sit. Sometimes a staff member is there, sometimes not. You're there an hour or longer sometimes. The mudroom usually leads to a restraint. You have to "assume a position." That's stand up with your hands behind your back in the shape of a diamond. If you move, it's an automatic restraint. They kind of egg you on, they yell at you. "If you move one inch, I'm going to drop you."[544]

Another girl held at Tryon complained that a staff person had spit in her face and told her to "shut up" when she was being held in the mudroom.[545]Such examples suggest that girls are made to stand alone in the mudroom as a form of punishment, although the staff members involved may view these incidents differently. As described elsewhere in this report, however, HRW/ACLU were not permitted access to the facilities nor to members of the line staff, and therefore could not obtain the staff's perspectives or other information to test the validity of these accounts.

A subtler form of isolation takes the form of restrictions on conversation among girls. Some girls complained that although not locked in their rooms, they were kept away from their peers.[546] Denise J. said that if a girl was caught talking to other girls at TryonReceptionCenter, she was punished.[547] Selena B., who had been held at Lansing, said that Christmas was fun in the facility because "we got to associate with each other."[548]

Social isolation can be expected to be especially damaging to girls because research reveals that connection with others is essential to their development.[549] In addition, when persons with any propensity to self-harm are placed in isolated confinement, they demonstrate a very high incidence of anxiety and are much more likely to harm themselves.[550] The following comments of the girls themselves, drawn from facilities grievance logs in which staff members summarize girls' complaints, suggest that isolation and prolonged lack of stimulation negatively impact girls' mental health. One grievance cites "having to stay in their rooms all the time. It affects her because she thinks about cutting herself."[551] Another complains that, "she is staying in her room for long periods of time and she begins to think about what her stepfather did to her."[552] Current understanding of the importance of a "relationship based" model of juvenile programming is contradicted by the practices of the Lansing and Tryon facilities.

Idleness

In addition, international standards require that incarcerated juveniles be provided with beneficial activities,[553] yet girls describe being subjected to lengthy periods of idleness at the facilities. Grievance log entries show complaints that girls are, for example, "sitting there and doing nothing,"[554] "sitting around doing nothing-wants something to do,"[555] and "tired of being bored."[556]

The problem of idleness in the Lansing facility appear to be most severe in the disciplinary "C-Unit," which was created to contain the most problematic girls. The threat of confinement in the "C-Unit" is also used to curb misbehavior by girls in other units. The girls held in the "C-Unit" have very little to do, must attend school in the unit, and are never allowed to attend assemblies or other facilities events.[557]

It's very boring. The kids don't have structured things to do for a great deal of their day. That's why the kids go crazy, get into fights. There's isn't enough to do. There aren't enough art supplies. They spend an inordinate amount of time indoors.[558]

Limitations on Contact with the Outside World

A number of factors converge to cut off girls incarcerated in New YorkState from the outside world. The remote location of the Lansing and Tryon facilities is a major factor effectively weakening or severing ties between girls and their families and communities. The sheer distance between the facilities and girls' homes is exacerbated by restrictions on contact and further yet by staff interference with girls' communications. Moreover, the attorneys who represent children during delinquency proceedings essentially cease to do so when children are sent to OCFS facilities, and are not even routinely informed as to which facility their client enters. The combination of these factors, along with the failure of grievance mechanisms and the absence of oversight, hide conditions within the facilities from the public eye.

Lack of Attorney Access upon Incarceration

Under international law, children are entitled to legal representation during delinquency proceedings as well as in post-adjudication proceedings, at the very least to appeal the incarceration decision itself.[559] Likewise, under U.S. law, children are entitled to legal representation during delinquency proceedings,[560]and professional standards require post-disposition representation to file appeals, conduct regular reviews of how the youth is faring, ensure receipt of services, and assess the continued appropriateness of placement, as well as address conditions of confinement.[561]

Children in New York receive little post-disposition representation. In New YorkState, about half of the children charged with offenses are represented by the Legal Aid Society or other institutional legal services providers and the other half are represented by state-funded, or "18-B" attorneys. [562] In New York City, between 65 and 70 percent of children charged with juvenile delinquency are represented by Legal Aid. [563] Factors such as the courts' and attorneys' overburdened caseloads and lack of resources contribute to a dilution of the quality of representation and delays in proceedings, and can make post-adjudication follow-up with youth impossible. [564]

Counsel is available for appeals of individual cases, but defense counsel are not funded to do follow-up representation concerning conditions of confinement once children are remanded to OCFS custody. Not surprisingly, the girls interviewed by HRW/ACLU reported not knowing who their lawyer was, having only seen their lawyer briefly in court, not being contacted by their lawyer after their case was adjudicated, and not attempting to contact their lawyer after being taken to the facility. Selena B., who was 12 years old when she was placed in OCFS custody, said, "I was supposed to appeal, I had a yellow slip to appeal, but I lost it in court."[565]Even those children who maintain contact with their attorneys once incarcerated are sometimes blocked from contacting their attorneys or from communicating with them in private. One Lansing resident filed a grievance stating that she received no help calling her lawyer.[566] Improved attorney contact would provide a means for incarcerated girls to communicate their concerns to the outside world, and the absence of this outlet makes it less likely that problematic facilities conditions will be addressed.

Family Visits

The geographical isolation of New York's girls' facilities poses an enormous barrier to girls' exercise of their right to family contact. Although the majority of children held at the Lansing and Tryon facilities come from New York City, both facilities are located in upstate New York. The Tryon facility is about 190 miles away from New York City. The Lansing facility is about 230 miles away. These long distances severely limit incarcerated girls' access to their families.

Often, family members do not have access to a car, or must rely on other relatives for transportation, or may have difficulty finding their way to the facilities even if they are able to find secure transport. The facilities offer no bus or other transportation services to families. In New YorkState, the percentage of children living in families without a car, 22 percent, is much higher than the national average of 6 percent.[567] In New York City, where many of the families of incarcerated children reside, over half of households have no car available to them.[568] Thus, despite the availability of weekend visiting hours, the location of the facilities and the failure of authorities to help families bridge the transportation gap denies children family visits. Janine Y. described her experience at Tryon Reception and at an upstate non-secure facility:

They lock us up so far from home. How are our parents supposed to come see us? They're not so fortunate to be able to go all the way upstate. My family never came. It was too far. And my aunt had a little baby.[569]

Restrictions on visitation may also interrupt girls' access to family. Family members may only visit on Saturdays and Sundays from 1:00pm to 4:00pm, a major barrier for family members who must work on weekends.[570] According to agency regulations, children have the right to receive "any and all visitors" during visiting hours, although facilities "may" act to exclude visitors unaccompanied by the child's parents, guardian, or "other suitable person."[571] The facilities themselves interpret these guidelines narrowly: According to facilities staff at Tryon, only relatives over the age of twenty-one who are on a list of approved visitors are allowed to visit the residents and, in practice, it sometimes takes months for residents to add visitors to the list.[572] Tryon's grievance logs contain complaints by girls that an aunt and uncle, and the father of a girl's child, were excluded from making personal visits.[573] One girl confined at Tryon complained that she was not allowed to see all of her family and "[w]ants to know who can really determine who 'immediate family' is. Wants to be able to see ALL of her family."[574]

The distance between the facilities and New York City not only affects families' ability to visit their children, but also impedes many outside service providers who would otherwise be available to work with girls incarcerated at Lansing and Tryon. According to a New York City service provider assisting girls exposed to commercial sexual exploitation, her group rarely makes contact with girls from Lansing or Tryon because the sheer distance to the facilities makes conducting outreach there impracticable. [575]

Girls, moreover, experience geographical isolation from their families at an early and determinative phase of their incarceration. During the two week evaluation period prior to their final placement, girls are held at TryonReceptionCenter, which is physically as well as administratively part of the Tryon complex. Boys, on the other hand, spend their two week evaluation period at the PyramidReceptionCenter, located in the Bronx, in New York City. Thus boys' families can more easily visit their child during a frightening and isolating period of initial incarceration. Although OCFS literature describes "[f]amily involvement" as a "key element" in the evaluation process,[576] such involvement may, as a practical matter, be impossible for the families of girls.

The U.S.'s international human rights obligations recognize the right to respect for the family, a duty which continues despite a child's incarceration. [577] International standards also recognize that each child "the right to maintain contact with his or her family through correspondence and visits, save in exceptional circumstances . . . ."[578] Specifically, incarcerated children have the right to "receive regular and frequent visits, in principle once a week" from family members.[579] In addition, experts in girls' development recognize the importance of promoting and sustaining family and other relationships to girls' psychological health.[580]

Telephone Calls and Mail

Under international standards, children deprived of their liberty have the right to communicate in writing or by telephone regularly with persons of their choice, and have the right to receive correspondence.[581] Girls held at Lansing and Tryon are allowed some access to the telephone. They are allowed to receive a certain number of calls per week, and may make one or two collect calls per week from a pay phone. Sometimes, girls are allowed to make a free call from a staff office. Calls are limited to ten minutes each, and must be made within a window of time during the day. The grievance logs of both Lansing and Tryon contain many complaints about staff interference with telephone calls in the form of denying calls,[582] cutting calls short,[583] and failures by staff to help girls receive calls.[584] One girl reported not being able to contact her family during the two weeks she was held at Tryon Reception.[585]In addition, girls reported that the line is often busy when their families call,[586] and that incoming calls are otherwise interfered with.[587]

Girls incarcerated at Tryon and Lansing are allowed to send and receive letters. To send letters, they buy stamps with money sent to them by relatives or from an account maintained by the state into which $1.25 is deposited per week for postage and commissary.[588] As with telephone calls, girls have lodged many complaints about interference with their ability to communicate with the outside world by mail. Typically, girls complain that staff fail to take out outgoing mail,[589] or do so only infrequently,[590] withhold incoming mail,[591] deny girls paper on which to write,[592] and read outgoing or incoming mail.[593] A girl held in room confinement was not allowed to write a letter to her mother.[594] Ebony V. said:

They don't want you to keep your relationship with your parents. They limit your calls and your mail. Your mail gets confiscated. My aunty wrote me a letter and it got confiscated, because she wrote 'aunty' on the envelope and not her real name.[595]

Sample letter from a girl incarcerated in the Lansing facility

Identifying information has been redacted to protect the author's privacy.

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Library and Media Access

There is a small computer lab in the library at Tryon which does not allow access to the internet. Girls held at Tryon are allowed to check one book out of the library at a time but report that the books in the library are old and do not interest them.[596] A few incarcerated girls complain that they are not given enough access to books,[597] or are discouraged from reading.[598] Asked whether TryonReceptionCenter has a library, Janine Y. replied, "No, just a book shelf with a couple of books on it."[599]

International standards call for every juvenile facility to provide "access to a library that is adequately stocked with both instructional and recreational books and periodicals suitable for the juveniles, who should be encouraged and enabled to make full use of it."[600] In addition, incarcerated children have the right to access publications and broadcasts to keep themselves informed of goings on in the outside world.[601]