Even if an inmate's sentence is not oppressively long, their treatment while incarcerated can still constitute subhuman treatment. Prisons are not medical facilities, but they regularly are forced to deal with mental health problems and care for elderly and terminally ill inmates. Food, if it's even edible, usually lacks enough nutrition for inmates' health to not deteriorate. Plus, with a lack of opportunities to see family, read, or gain skill sets, inmates are placed in buildings which lack any resemblance of the civilized world.
“Federal prosecutors are investigating the Massachusetts state prison system over the treatment of elderly and severely ill prisoners, following a five-month investigation by the New England Center for Investigative Reporting (NECIR) published in the Boston Globe and WGBH News.“
New England Center for Investigative Reporting
May 29, 2019
Read More“Until March, state prisoners could have an unlimited number of visitors during set visiting days and hours. Under the new rules, they are restricted to a list of five to 10 visitors, depending on their security classification. The list can be updated twice a year. Prisoners can apply for exceptions to the cap only if every person on their list is immediate family and they want to add another immediate family member. “
The Massachusetts Republican
September 17, 2018
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