“PBMP stands for Predatory Behavior Management Program,” Lalita Moskowitz said. “It’s the euphemism that the Department of Corrections uses for this long-term solitary confinement unit.”Moskowitz is the managing attorney at the ACLU of New Mexico, who said the PBMP is a program that has been misused for years within the Penitentiary of New Mexico located in Santa Fe. The ACLU shared a photo showing the conditions they say inmates are dealing with.”This is in cells that are approximately the size of a parking space,” Moskowitz said. “They’re often filthy, always isolated, and people are confined there for at least a year, often more than a year at a time.”Now they are filing this lawsuit against the New Mexico Department of Corrections to change its policy on the program or end it altogether. The New Mexico Corrections Department did not directly comment on the pending lawsuit but argues that the term “solitary confinement” does not exist within the system. A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections responded with a statement in part saying, “While in the program, inmates have access to educational resources, medical and behavioral health services, and maintain regular, meaningful interactions with staff.” KOAT Legal Expert John Day tells us what this could look like if it goes to court. “It’s going to be a clash of the two philosophies,” Day. “It’s going to be up to a court, ultimately, to decide. Does the use of solitary confinement in New Mexico prisons violate the Constitution?”The lawsuit includes three individuals, the ACLU says have been subjected to this program. One of them – O’Shay Toney, in a statement to the ACLU, says, “They call us problematic. But isn’t it better to invest in the solution of a problem rather than burying it? Change comes with conviction, and we’re asking for help.”
“PBMP stands for Predatory Behavior Management Program,” Lalita Moskowitz said. “It’s the euphemism that the Department of Corrections uses for this long-term solitary confinement unit.”
Moskowitz is the managing attorney at the ACLU of New Mexico, who said the PBMP is a program that has been misused for years within the Penitentiary of New Mexico located in Santa Fe. The ACLU shared a photo showing the conditions they say inmates are dealing with.
“This is in cells that are approximately the size of a parking space,” Moskowitz said. “They’re often filthy, always isolated, and people are confined there for at least a year, often more than a year at a time.”
Now they are filing this lawsuit against the New Mexico Department of Corrections to change its policy on the program or end it altogether.
The New Mexico Corrections Department did not directly comment on the pending lawsuit but argues that the term “solitary confinement” does not exist within the system.
A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections responded with a statement in part saying, “While in the program, inmates have access to educational resources, medical and behavioral health services, and maintain regular, meaningful interactions with staff.”
KOAT Legal Expert John Day tells us what this could look like if it goes to court.
“It’s going to be a clash of the two philosophies,” Day. “It’s going to be up to a court, ultimately, to decide. Does the use of solitary confinement in New Mexico prisons violate the Constitution?”
The lawsuit includes three individuals, the ACLU says have been subjected to this program. One of them – O’Shay Toney, in a statement to the ACLU, says, “They call us problematic. But isn’t it better to invest in the solution of a problem rather than burying it? Change comes with conviction, and we’re asking for help.”
