Although solitary confinement is one of the most effective ways to keep today's prisoners away from conflict and communication, it is also the most harmful to their health. According to an NPR.org article, the purpose of most solitary confinement units in America “is to control prison gangs (NPR, 2011).” Sometimes putting a gang member in solitary confinement reduces the effect that confinement is supposed to have when the inmate begins to lose his mind. Prisoners held in solitary confinement display more psychotic symptoms than a normal prisoner, including a higher suicide rate. Once a prisoner's mental capacity to understand why he is in prison and why he is being punished fails, there is no reason to keep the prisoner in solitary confinement. Once your ability to understand punishment disappears, the consequences of your actions lose value and become irrelevant. Many people have tried to stop the use of solitary confinement, calling it “cruel and unusual punishment.” (Holt v. Sarver, 1969).” People also say this is a direct violation of our Eighth Amendment rights. The definition of cruel and unusual punishment is as follows: “Punishment which would amount to torture or savagery, any cruel and degrading punishment not known to the Common Law, or any fine, penalty, imprisonment or treatment which is so disproportionate to the offense as to upset the moral sense of the community. (Farflex Inc., 2011).” Studies show that solitary confinement can alter a prisoner's mental state to such an extent that it is harmful to their health; I see no reason why this cannot be classified as cruel and unusual punishment. In an experiment conducted by the BBC's Horizon group, they studied the effects... middle of paper... BBC. (2008, January). BBC-Horizon-Total isolation. Retrieved October 24, 2011, from www.bbc.co.uk: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/horizon/broadband/tx/isolation/highlights/Convention, D. o. (1787, September 17). Constitution of the United States. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America. Farflex Inc. (2011). Cruel and unusual punishment. Retrieved October 24, 2011, from legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com: http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Cruel+and+Unusual+PunishmentNPR. (2011, October). In Pelican Bay Prison, a life in solitary confinement: NPR. Retrieved October 24, 2011, from npr.or: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5584254University, T.T. (2011). Deprivation and its bad moods. Retrieved October 24, 2011, from indianapublicmedia.org: http://indianapublicmedia.org/amomentofscience/deprivation-discontents/