The growth of the inmate population nationwide has given rise to supermax prisons over the past two decades. Among the controversial issues that supermax prisons face are concerns about the types of individuals placed in solitary confinement and the arbitrary nature of those placements. This study profiled inmates in administrative segregation, as supermax confinement is called in Colorado, and the process and reasons for their placement. Evidence of institutional misbehavior, more serious criminal histories, and preexisting mental health needs were found among segregated inmates.
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