The destructive impact, at exorbitant fiscal and social costs, of prison solitary confinement was the focus of recent Senate Subcommittee hearings chaired by Senate Richard Durbin (D-IL.).  Since 2010, when the Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights first held hearings which exposed the emotional toll of prison solitary confinement, Senator Durbin has called for strict limits on its use by prison authorities. At this week’s hearings he firmly reiterated that solitary confinement is "a human rights issue we can't ignore."  On “All Things Considered,” NPR Justice Correspondent Carrie Johnson highlights the key issues raised during expert testimony before the committee and notes that:

"In the last couple of years, a lot of factors have come together," Carrie tells Melissa Block on All things Considered. …"There have been efforts by states to save a lot of money and reduce violence in prisons," Carrie says. "And also, a critical mass of advocacy by the ACLU and some researchers," she says, along with bipartisan interest in the issue.

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Same-sex couples may now obtain a marriage license from the Cook County Clerk, as a result of a federal court ruling today. The ACLU of Illinois and Lambda legal brought the case before U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman to challenge Illinois' current ban on the freedom to marry, so that couples would not have to wait any longer. While the ruling only applies to the Cook County Clerk, the ACLU of Illinois believes the ruling should apply to all of Illinois. The Chicago Tribune spoke with ACLU of Illinois LGBT Project Director John Knight:

“We’re thrilled that Judge Coleman recognized the serious harm to the many Illinois families from continuing to deny them the freedom to marry,” said John Knight, LGBT and HIV Project Director for the ACLU of Illinois. “The U.S. Constitution guarantees these families the personal and emotional benefits as well as the critical legal protections of marriage now, and we are thankful that the court extended this dignity to couples immediately.”

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