Groups seek probe of solitary confinement in North Carolina

RALEIGH, NC (AP) — Advocacy groups have asked federal authorities to investigate solitary confinement in North Carolina.

The request comes weeks after the state agreed to pay a $2.5 million settlement to the family of a man with mental illness who died after being held in solitary confinement for 35 days.

Earlier in July, President Barack Obama separately announced a federal review of how the practice is used in prisons.

Groups including the American Civil Liberties Union and North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services sent the letter on Monday asking for a Justice Department investigation in North Carolina.

The letter cites the treatment of mentally ill inmates including Michael Anthony Kerr, whose 2014 death led to the monetary settlement and firings and resignations at Alexander Correctional Institution.

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