Jean Casella

Jean Casella is director of Solitary Watch, a national nonprofit newsroom that investigates and reports on the use of solitary confinement in the United States. Her writing on prisons has been published by The Guardian, The Nation, and Mother Jones, among others.

An officer walks through the second floor of the Ringerike Prison in Norway in 2024. The facility, spread over two floors and an air yard, holds Anders Behring Breivik, who is responsible for a pair of deadly terrorist attacks in 2011.

15 Years Ago, Anders Breivik Massacred 77 People. Norway Is Determined to Treat Him Humanely. 15 Years Ago, Anders Breivik Massacred 77 People. Norway Is Determined to Treat Him Humanely.

Our prisons, ourselves.

Jul 22, 2026 / Jean Casella

Unlock The Box: The Fight Against Solitary Confinement in New York Unlock The Box: The Fight Against Solitary Confinement in New York

As a movement against punitive segregation in local prisons and jails, a new report by the New York Civil Liberties Union reveals more disturbing details than ever before.

Oct 2, 2012 / Jean Casella and James Ridgeway

New York’s Black Sites

New York’s Black Sites New York’s Black Sites

As states like Mississippi reject solitary confinement, this “blue” state leads the nation in the use of “disciplinary segregation.” Or as prisoners call it...

Jul 11, 2012 / Feature / Jean Casella and James Ridgeway

x