B.C. association files lawsuit to stop practices akin to solitary confinement

A B.C. association has filed a lawsuit in the hope of stopping practices it says are not unlike solitary confinement.

A B.C. association has filed a lawsuit against the federal government in the hope of stopping practices it says are not unlike solitary confinement.

In a statement Wednesday, the BC Civil Liberties Association said it hoped the lawsuit would stop wardens and federal prisons from isolating people using lockdowns and "restrictive movement routines."

The organization alleges these practices are used to lock down institutions as a whole or to set restrictive schedules "that isolate people to their cells for days, weeks and months at a time."

"We know that isolating people indefinitely has devastating impacts on their physical and mental health. It dramatically increases the risk of suicide," said Megan Tweedie, senior counsel for BCCLA, in a news release.

"Long-term solitary confinement by any name cannot be allowed to continue."

The BCCLA claims in its lawsuit that prisons don't have the authority to introduce indefinite lockdowns and restrictive movement routines, and argues the practices violate charter rights.

In 2019, the BCCLA challenged an administration segregation law and won.