Groups Cite Youth Confinement In 7 Mich. Counties

DETROIT (AP) - Two prisoner rights advocacy groups that criticize the use of solitary confinement for juveniles say they've uncovered at least 15 people in seven Michigan counties who've undergone the process.

Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union issued a report Wednesday on solitary confinement for juveniles.

They say brief isolation may be needed for security, but longer solitary confinement can cause serious psychological and physical harm.

The report "Growing Up Locked Down" covers 125 individuals in 19 states.

The Michigan ACLU in Detroit says 15 Michigan subjects experienced solitary confinement in Berrien, Calhoun, Ingham, Kent, Oakland, Saginaw and Wayne counties.

It says five Michigan juveniles spend two months or more in solitary in jail, and three spent at least a month in solitary in prison.

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