Sidley Austin Scores Landmark Civil Rights Verdict Against Prolonged Solitary Confinement in State Prisons

"This trial win is significant because it upholds the Eighth Amendment, which is a difficult test. The punitive damages verdict sends a powerful message that the acts that took place here were extreme. We appreciate the jury's decision," Sidley Austin partner and lead trial attorney Sona De told Law.com.

October 04, 2024 at 10:27 AM

5 minute read

Constitutional Law

Mason Lawlor

A federal jury in New York recently returned a verdict in favor of an inmate who was unlawfully subjected to solitary confinement for nine years, marking what may be one of the first decisions to find practices in New York state prisons to be cruel and unusual under the high standards of the Eighth Amendment.

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