Protective Custody

Who is Assigned to Protective Custody?

Placement in protective custody, administrative segregation, or administrative detention can be voluntary and involuntary. If an inmate is classified as a protective custody case and segregated from others, it is likely that he or she was threatened or actually assaulted while in the general population. He or she may be an inmate informant or may have been pressured to participate in nonconsensual sex. Some former law enforcement officers, or people who held legal positions outside of the institution, are also placed in protective custody. Individuals may have previously worked in sensitive positions within the institution, such as prison dog caretaker. Finally, high-profile prisoners are also sometimes held in protective custody. Take, for example, Yolanda Saldivar, who was convicted of the murder of Tejano music singer Selena. National media attention covered Saldivar's 1995 trial, sentencing, and arrival at a Texas state prison. She is currently housed in protective custody in an isolated portion of the unit for both her safety and the security of the institution.

Controversial uses of Protective Custody

Historically, institutions segregated minorities, homosexuals, those with mental illnesses, or the terminally ill from other inmates in order to limit them from participating in prison activities and to control the threat of prison riots. However, following numerous lawsuits and challenges, this use of administrative detention, with some exceptions, has been greatly reduced.

In a number of court cases in the 1960s and 1970s (see Washington v. Lee, 1996, 1968; McLelland v.[Page 785]Siegler, 1971; Taylor v. Perini, 1976, 1977, 1979; and Thomas v. Pate, 1974), the Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation can only be used to maintain security, discipline, and order within jails. Since then, institutions have reduced the use of racial segregation unless there is a compelling reason for the separation. When racial segregation does occur, documentation must be kept detailing the reasons for it.

Unlike minorities, it is more common for prisons to place homosexual or bisexual prisoners on protective custody than in previous years. This may be because these inmates are more likely to request protective custody than heterosexuals. It may also be because they are targeted for sexual relationships more often than those inmates perceived to be heterosexual.

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