ILLINOIS HOUSE REVIEWS CONDITIONS AT TAMMS
April 2008
Former Inmates Describe Psychological Torture at State Supermax Prison
During Illinois House Committee Hearing
The Illinois House of Representatives Committee on Prison Reform held a hearing today in Chicago to review the current conditions at Tamms Supermax Prison—a "supermaximum security" prison in southern Illinois where prisoners are sent for extra punishment. The prison was intended for short-term incarceration (1-2 years) during which time prisoners are in permanent solitary confinement. However, 88 men have been at Tamms since the prison opened 10 years ago and are being held indefinitely.
"Permanent solitary confinement, often for years at a time with no end in sight, is a form of psychological torture, and it often leads to mental illness," said Jean Maclean Snyder, a former MacArthur Justice Center attorney who has represented Tamms’ prisoners in the past. "And when some of these men finally do return to society, Tamms has left them worse off than before they went in. It’s time to reevaluate the effectiveness of supermax prisons."
They’re also extremely expensive. According to the Illinois Department of Corrections, the average annual cost of housing a prisoner at Tamms is two to three times as much as any other adult prison in Illinois.
"The fact that we’re paying tens of thousands of dollars more to lock people up at Tamms when there is no benefit to the prisoner or the larger society is mind boggling," said Locke Bowman, legal director of the MacArthur Justice Center. "Throwing more money away on an abusive system at Tamms that doesn’t work is not the answer."
Mental health professionals, prisoners’ family members, MacArthur Justice Center attorneys, and advocates testified at the hearing and are calling on the Illinois House of Representatives to end psychological torture at Tamms.
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