Solitary Confinement in Georgia: Fiscal Costs, Federal Liability, and the Case for Legislative Reform

Executive Summary

Georgia faces mounting fiscal exposure and federal liability over its solitary confinement practices. A federal judge has already imposed daily fines on the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC), the U.S. Department of Justice has documented systemic constitutional violations, and the state’s primary isolation facility has been condemned by leading experts as “one of the harshest and most draconian” in the nation.

• $2,500/day in federal fines ($75,000/month) imposed on GDC after a federal court found the agency “flagrantly violated” a settlement agreement governing solitary confinement conditions — with additional sanctions threatened.
• 78% of people in Georgia’s Special Management Unit (SMU) had been held in isolation for more than 2 years, and 26% for more than 5 years — periods the United Nations classifies as torture when exceeding 15 consecutive days.
• 39% of people in the SMU had a diagnosed mental illness, despite research showing individuals with mental illness in solitary are approximately 7 times more likely to self-harm than those in general population.
• ~50% staffing vacancy systemwide makes compliance with court-ordered reforms structurally impossible — the DOJ found vacancy rates exceed 70% at Georgia’s 10 largest facilities.
• A 100-page federal contempt order documented that GDC falsified compliance documents and demonstrated “no desire or intention to comply” with court-mandated protections — exposing the state to additional litigation, consent decrees, and taxpayer-funded penalties.

Key Takeaway: Georgia taxpayers are funding daily federal fines, independent monitors, and mounting legal costs because GDC has refused to comply with court-ordered solitary confinement reforms.

Fiscal Impact

Direct Costs Already Imposed

The April 2024 contempt order in Gumm v. Jacobs imposed the following costs on GDC — and by extension, Georgia taxpayers:

• Daily fines of $2,500 ($75,000 per month) starting May 20, 2024, for a period of 6 months
• Appointment of an independent monitor at GDC’s expense
• Attorney’s fees for the plaintiffs’ enforcement costs
• Extension of the settlement agreement, prolonging oversight obligations
• Threat of additional sanctions for continued noncompliance

Escalating Liability

The October 2024 DOJ investigation — documented in a 93-page findings report — identified a pattern of unconstitutional conditions across Georgia’s prison system. If the DOJ proceeds to a consent decree or federal litigation, the state faces potentially tens of millions in compliance costs, court-appointed receivership expenses, and legal fees.

The staffing crisis compounds these costs. With a vacancy rate of approximately 50% systemwide and greater than 70% at the 10 largest facilities, the state cannot comply with existing court orders regardless of institutional intent. Every day of noncompliance generates additional financial exposure.

Cost of Inaction vs. Reform

States that have proactively enacted solitary confinement reforms — including Colorado, Connecticut, and New Jersey — have avoided the cycle of litigation, contempt findings, and court-imposed penalties that Georgia now faces. Legislative action to establish clear standards, duration limits, and oversight mechanisms would reduce the state’s legal exposure and shift spending from federal fines and litigation defense to structured compliance.

Key Takeaway: Federal fines, independent monitors, attorney’s fees, and looming DOJ enforcement action represent an escalating fiscal burden that legislative reform could mitigate.

Key Findings

Georgia’s SMU: Conditions and Duration

Georgia’s Special Management Unit at Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson confines people in cells measuring approximately 6 feet by 9 feet — roughly the size of a parking space — with solid metal doors and only a small glass window. People are confined 22 to 24 hours per day.

July 2017 data from the SMU reveals the extreme duration of isolation the state imposes:

Individual cases documented in litigation include Timothy Gumm, held for 7.5 years despite 14 separate recommendations over 4 years that he be transferred out, and Johnny Mack Brown, held for 9 years.

Documented Psychological Harm

Research spanning more than 150 years has been “strikingly consistent since the early nineteenth century” in documenting severe psychological harm from solitary confinement. A 2025 meta-analysis synthesizing data from 171,300 inmates found significantly greater psychological distress, more psychiatric symptoms including self-harm and thought disorders, and greater need for mental health services among those in solitary.

Dr. Craig Haney’s research documented the following symptom prevalence among people in solitary: 91% reported anxiety, 86% reported oversensitivity to stimuli, 83% reported social withdrawal, 77% reported chronic depression, 70% reported an impending nervous breakdown, and 68% reported heart palpitations.

Suicide and Self-Harm

People held in solitary confinement comprise approximately 6–8% of the total U.S. prison population but account for roughly 50% of all prison suicides. Individuals with mental illness in solitary are approximately 7 times more likely to self-harm than those in general population. In Georgia, 39% of people in the SMU had a diagnosed mental illness — the state was confining its most vulnerable people in its most harmful conditions.

GDC’s Documented Noncompliance

Chief Judge Marc T. Treadwell’s 100-page contempt order documented that GDC:

• Placed people in “strip cells” upon arrival, leaving them naked or near-naked for hours or days
• Denied settlement-mandated out-of-cell time, programming, and mental health care
• Falsified compliance documents — the court found GDC records were “not only insufficient but also unreliable”
• Confined people beyond the 24-month maximum established in the settlement
• Demonstrated, in the court’s words, “no desire or intention to comply”

One person testified about a cell where the toilet was broken and filled with feces and urine from prior occupants. He was forced to urinate in a cup and pour it in the sink, or defecate on toilet paper and dispose of it on his food tray. He had no mattress, no clothing, and was held in freezing temperatures. GDC’s attorney did not refute this testimony.

Staffing Crisis as a Structural Barrier

The DOJ found a staffing vacancy rate of approximately 50% systemwide and greater than 70% at the 10 largest facilities. Without adequate staff, people cannot be escorted to outdoor recreation, programming, or medical appointments — making compliance with court orders impossible. The DOJ documented that victims of gang violence have “bled out from treatable stab wounds, waiting for a guard escort.”

Racial Disparities

Federal Bureau of Prisons data from 2022 shows Black individuals constituted 38% of the total BOP population but 59% of Special Management Unit placements, while White individuals made up 58% of population but only 35% of SMU placements. Among women, Black women comprised 42% of women in solitary but only 22% of the total female prison population.

Additional Georgia Incidents

At Smith State Prison in Glennville, a person was held in a shower stall measuring 3.75 feet by 6.75 feet for nearly 3 days with no mattress, toilet, ventilation, heat, or water. The person ultimately hanged himself. The DOJ also found that queer and transgender people were placed in solitary after reporting sexual assault or during mental health crises — making isolation a punitive response to victimization.

Key Takeaway: Georgia confines people — including those with serious mental illness — in conditions a federal judge found “flagrantly” violate court orders, in a facility experts describe as among the harshest in the nation, for durations the United Nations defines as torture.

Comparable States

Multiple states have enacted legislative reforms to solitary confinement, providing models for Georgia:

States with Duration Limits

• New York (2021): The HALT Solitary Confinement Act limits solitary to 15 consecutive days, defines solitary as 17 or more hours per day in a cell, prohibits solitary for people 21 or younger, 55 or older, pregnant or postpartum, those with disabilities, and those with serious mental illness, and requires a minimum of 4 hours of out-of-cell programming daily. Implementation challenges are significant — an April 2024 contempt ruling found 40% of individuals in solitary had been held longer than the law allows.
• Connecticut and Nevada: Enacted 15-day maximum limits aligning with the Mandela Rules as of June 2023.
• New Jersey: The Isolated Confinement Restriction Act (2020) established a 20 consecutive day maximum.
• Massachusetts: Enacted a comprehensive statute defining restrictive housing as more than 22 hours per day in a cell, requiring mental health screening, prohibiting placement for vulnerable populations, and mandating regular reviews.

States That Have Eliminated Restrictive Housing

• Colorado, Delaware, North Dakota, and Vermont reported that they no longer house individuals under restrictive housing definitions as of 2019–2020.

National Trends

The 2019 Liman Center census found 31,542 people held in restrictive housing across 39 reporting states — down from an estimated 80,000–100,000 in 2014. Of those, 46% had been held for 3 months or less, but 11% (nearly 3,000 people) had been held for more than 3 years. Between 2018 and 2020, legislators in approximately 25 states introduced bills to limit restrictive housing, with about 15 states enacting legislation. In 2021 alone, seven states enacted legislation addressing solitary confinement.

Federal Legislation

The First Step Act (2018) codified a ban on juvenile solitary confinement in the federal system — the only enacted federal legislation directly addressing solitary. The End Solitary Confinement Act (2023, reintroduced 2025) and the Solitary Confinement Reform Act (2024) have been introduced but not enacted.

Lessons for Georgia

New York’s implementation challenges demonstrate that legislation alone is insufficient without staffing, oversight, and enforcement mechanisms. Georgia’s existing ~50% staffing vacancy rate means any reform legislation must address workforce capacity alongside duration limits to avoid the compliance failures that have plagued other states.

Key Takeaway: At least 15 states have enacted solitary confinement reforms since 2018, and four states have eliminated restrictive housing entirely — Georgia has no legislation limiting the practice.

Policy Recommendations

Based on the evidence compiled in this research brief, the following legislative actions would reduce Georgia’s fiscal exposure, align the state with national reform trends, and protect people in state custody from documented harm:

1. Establish a Statutory Maximum Duration

Enact legislation limiting solitary confinement to 15 consecutive days, consistent with the UN Mandela Rules and reforms adopted by Connecticut, Nevada, and New York. Provide that any period exceeding this threshold requires independent judicial review.

2. Prohibit Solitary for Vulnerable Populations

Prohibit placement in solitary confinement for people with serious mental illness, pregnant or postpartum individuals, people under 21 or over 55, people with physical or cognitive disabilities, and individuals who have reported sexual assault or are in mental health crisis. Research shows individuals with mental illness in solitary are approximately 7 times more likely to self-harm.

3. Mandate Minimum Out-of-Cell Time and Programming

Require a minimum of 4 hours daily of out-of-cell time in congregate settings for anyone in restrictive housing, with access to educational programming, mental health services, and outdoor recreation.

4. Require Transparency and Data Reporting

Mandate quarterly public reporting by GDC of the number of people in restrictive housing, duration of placement, mental health diagnoses, demographic breakdown by race, age, gender, and facility, and the reasons for each placement. Georgia currently lacks any public reporting requirement.

5. Address the Staffing Crisis

Appropriate funds to reduce the approximately 50% staffing vacancy rate that makes compliance with court orders and any future legislative mandates structurally impossible. Staffing reform is a prerequisite to solitary reform.

6. Establish Independent Oversight

Create a statutory independent oversight body with unannounced inspection authority over all restrictive housing units in GDC facilities. The April 2024 contempt finding — including falsified compliance documents — demonstrates that GDC self-reporting is unreliable.

7. Mandate Structured Transition Protocols

Require GDC to develop and implement evidence-based transition protocols for people moving from solitary to general population, addressing the three documented “reentry shocks” — sensory overload, social disorientation, and institutional whiplash — that drive the cycling phenomenon.

8. Commission a Georgia-Specific Impact Study

Direct the Georgia General Assembly’s Budget and Research Office to produce a fiscal impact analysis of solitary confinement practices, including the total cost of litigation, contempt fines, independent monitors, and mental health consequences attributable to restrictive housing.

Key Takeaway: Proactive legislation establishing duration limits, vulnerable population protections, transparency requirements, and staffing investment would reduce Georgia’s escalating federal liability and align the state with national reform trends.

Read the Source Document

Read the full GPS Investigative Research Brief on Solitary Confinement & Restrictive Housing (PDF)

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