"If you're serving hard time inside a California prison, you'll often find yourself stuck in a cramped cell with a stranger. You hang a bedsheet to manufacture the semblance of privacy between bed and toilet. Any little thing can erupt into a source of tension and angst - body odor, snoring, lights. Each moment becomes a test to avoid confrontation or brawling. With no immediate help from officers, the fear and anxiety festers inside you. And day by day, your mental health deteriorates."
"You don't necessarily know what the capacity of this person is, or like what their crime is. You're not told any of that when you're put in a cell with them. I don't know if this person has the propensity to murder me in my sleep or commit a violent act against me just because they're feeling some type of way."
"That's possible because California's incarcerated population continues to decline - from its peak of over 173,000 people in 2006 to fewer than 90,000 today. A handful of prisons have closed, while changes in resentencing and parole eligibility have helped release thousands of individuals. Under former Gov. Jerry Brown and now Gov. Gavin Newsom, rehabilitation and reentry opportunities remain a growing focal point, too."
Many incarcerated Californians share cramped cells with strangers, creating stressors like lack of privacy, body odor, snoring, and lighting that can provoke confrontations and harm mental health. Prison residents report fear of unknown roommates and potential violence. Some policymakers and prison officials propose increasing single-occupancy cells to improve safety and wellbeing. California’s incarcerated population has fallen from over 173,000 in 2006 to fewer than 90,000 today, prompting prison closures and releases tied to resentencing and parole changes. San Quentin Rehabilitation Center operates an "earned living" unit of single-person cells and plans to repurpose Death Row buildings toward single-cell housing expansion.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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