Criminology

Join the Urban Institute for a conversation on restrictive housing and how social science research and lessons from on-the-ground implementation can move reform forward. A controversial practice in corrections policy, restrictive housing typically isolates an incarcerated person to their cell for all but an hour per day, sometimes for months or years. Although correctional administrators often argue that restrictive housing makes facilities safer, research has shown it can result in a plethora of negative health outcomes in those who experience it.

This discussion pairs Keramet Reiter, a UCI professor of criminology, law & society with more than 20 years of experience researching solitary confinement, with Sara Sullivan, a US Department of Justice policy advisor who has worked with numerous corrections systems to reduce or eliminate the use of restrictive housing. The conversation will focus on how research and practice can come together to reform restrictive housing in prisons and jails.

SPEAKERS:

Keramet Reiter, Professor and Vice Chair of Criminology, Law, and Society, University of California, Irvine

Sara Sullivan, Senior Policy Advisor, US Department of Justice

David Pitts, Interim Associate Vice President and Senior Research Fellow, Urban Institute (moderator)

PRISON RESEARCH MEETS PRACTICE LECTURE SERIES