New Prison Policy Initiative report, Bad Behavior, provides first 50-state analysis of prison disciplinary systems in the era of mass incarceration

January 28, 2025

The systems meant to maintain order and safety in prisons are ripe for abuse by corrections staff, are frequently used to dole out extreme punishments, and play a key role in keeping people in prison longer, a new report shows. The Prison Policy Initiative’s report Bad Behavior: How prison disciplinary policies manufacture misconduct, released this morning, offers an overview of all 50 state prison systems’ disciplinary policies, and explains how the use of these policies as a tool for mass punishment works against prisons’ stated goal of rehabilitation.

Bad Behavior is the broadest review of disciplinary policies to date, and draws on original research as well as testimony from 47 currently incarcerated people, providing an essential look at how prisons are run in the age of mass incarceration. The report’s findings help explain why over 50% of people in state prisons in a typical year are punished at least once for misconduct:

• It is nearly impossible to avoid disciplinary infractions behind bars: Prison rules cover a vast range of possible conduct, including vague conduct such as “disrespect” and redundant rules about rulebreaking, and the vast majority of disciplinary cases are for minor violations rather than interpersonal harm.
• Incarcerated people have no meaningful way to defend themselves when accused of infractions: Accused people are typically not allowed to seek representation, and face significant obstacles to finding and presenting evidence (including witnesses) at disciplinary hearings, meaning that many people are severely punished based solely on the testimony of a corrections officer.
• Discipline policies are exacerbating America’s mass incarceration crisis: People found guilty of disciplinary violations are frequently put in solitary confinement or have good-time credits revoked, both of which can effectively lengthen their prison sentences.

The report notes that misconduct records impact incarcerated people’s chances of earning early release in other ways as well, such as by preventing them from participating in educational or job training programs, and working against them in hearings before parole boards.

“Whether it’s being stripped of one’s ability to visit with family, getting expelled from programs, or being put in solitary, punishments for rulebreaking always come with a cost to rehabilitation and reentry,” said report author Brian Nam-Sonenstein. “State lawmakers should be paying close attention to how many minor infractions are punished in prisons, and the impact this has on people’s circumstances when they’re released.”

The report issues recommendations to departments of corrections for how to immediately make their disciplinary systems fairer and more constructive, including:

• Reduce the number of misconduct rules, focusing first on rules that are redundant and that create opportunities for discrimination and abuse.
• Limit the influence of misconduct records on early release decisions, recognizing that most infractions are minor and that rules are often enforced arbitrarily.
• End solitary confinement and bans on family contact, and institute non-punitive responses to violations such as drug use behind bars — especially in facilities where treatment is practically nonexistent.
• Improve fairness and accountability in disciplinary processes, starting with basic measures such as allowing people representation at hearings and the ability to gather and present evidence and witnesses.

“The disciplinary system behind bars is largely a mirror of the criminal legal system on the outside, with one crucial difference — departments of corrections can modify their systems at any time,” Nam-Sonenstein said. “Immediate action can — and should — be taken to stop people in prisons being thrown in solitary or having their release jeopardized because of a system that is so reactive to minor misbehavior, and often manufactures it out of whole cloth.”

The full report is available at https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/discipline.html. Additionally, the Prison Policy Initiative published a guide for reporters investigating disciplinary systems in their state’s prisons, available at https://www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2025/01/28/discipline-pressguide/.