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North Carolina jail ends solitary confinement for teenagers

A North Carolina county sheriff has ended the jail's practice of holding 16- and 17-year-olds in solitary confinement.
Credit: KARE
Empty jail cell - Stock Photo

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - A North Carolina county sheriff has ended the jail's practice of holding 16- and 17-year-olds in solitary confinement.

    

The Charlotte Observer reports Mecklenburg County Garry McFadden says the move is intended to bolster relations between young inmates and detention officers. He said the disciplinary detention unit stripped teens of their dignity.

    

McFadden campaigned on ending the policy, and moved out the five inmates held in isolation Dec. 31. Those inmates are now let out of cells for at least seven hours a day and can attend classes and enjoy other privileges.

    

Mecklenburg began moving away from the practice last fall, letting teens out of their cells for four hours each weekday, instead of one.

    

The practice was banned for youth in federal custody and the state prison system in 2016.

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