Inmate’s suicide shows need for reforms, advocates say

This undated photo provided by the Anderson Family, shows Cachin Anderson, a New York prisoner who killed himself while in solitary confinement. Prisoner advocates say Anderson's death and others illustrate how New York's prison system fails to ensure the safety of inmates who might hurt themselves if left alone in a cell. (Courtesy of the Anderson Family via AP) This undated photo provided by the Anderson Family, shows Cachin Anderson, a New York prisoner who killed himself while in solitary confinement. Prisoner advocates say Anderson's death and others illustrate how New York's prison system fails to ensure the safety of inmates who might hurt themselves if left alone in a cell. (Courtesy of the Anderson Family via AP)

By RYAN TARINELLI / Associated Press December 15, 2019 7 min read

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) – The final two months of Cachin Anderson’s life in New York’s prison system were filled with warnings he was a man in crisis.

He climbed on a sink and dove headfirst at the floor, saying he “wanted to end it and go home.” He urinated on guards. He hurled a can at one corrections officer and punched another in the face, knocking him out.

That behavior landed him in solitary confinement, a setting experts say is often unsuitable for people who are mentally ill or trying to hurt themselves. And there, Anderson killed himself on June 28, 2017, a death a state oversight board later said could have been prevented.

Prisoner advocates say Anderson’s death and others illustrate how New York’s prison system fails to ensure the safety of inmates who might hurt themselves if left alone in a cell.

New York state prison inmates in solitary confinement or long-term “keeplock” units, in which inmates are isolated, were over five times more likely to kill themselves than prisoners in general confinement, according to a report from the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.