Connecticut prison system to halt in-cell shackling after civil-rights settlement

The Connecticut Department of Correction has agreed, in a settlement with the American Civil Liberties Union and Disability Rights Connecticut, to end the practice of chaining inmates’ wrists and ankles inside their cells. The pact requires the agency to revise its guidelines, provide training on full-stationary restraints, and submit regular usage reports to the ACLU. Full-stationary restraints, which bind a person’s limbs to a bed, remain allowed only when an inmate presents an imminent risk of self-harm or harm to others.

Interim Correction Commissioner Sharonda Carlos and Correction Ombuds DeVaughn Ward hailed the settlement as a step toward safer, more dignified care for incarcerated individuals with mental illness. The deal resolves a 2021 lawsuit that challenged in-cell restraints and solitary confinement at the former Northern Correctional Institution. The new policies are slated to take effect on Sept. 1.