State prisons considering single-occupancy cells

Policymakers contend that more of such units might better serve public safety.

- BY JOE GARCIA

A GUARD stands watch at Pelican Bay State Prison in 2011. Officials are making the case for offering more single-cell units for inmates.

(Rich Pedroncelli Associated Press)

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," said Steven Warren, an inmate inside San Quentin Rehabilitation Center. "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."

Some California policymakers and prison officials believe it's time to rethink these potentially harmful housing situations. They contend that offering more single-occupancy cells might serve the best interests of prison residents and public safety.

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.