Examining facility-level differences in the early decisions of the disciplinary process and use of disciplinary segregation

Disciplinary segregation (DS) – a type of restrictive housing (RH) in which incarcerated people who violate prison rules are held for a fixed term – is widely used in U.S. prisons. Most research on DS has focused on its effects on incarcerated people. Fewer studies have examined the application of DS. Using focal concerns and cumulative disadvantage perspectives, we explore whether compositional effects or facility-level differences in earlier discipline processing can explain facility-level differences in the use of DS. This study utilized a retrospective non-experimental, cross-sectional design to examine who receives discipline, for what, and for how long in Minnesota prisons. We use a sample of approximately 2600 incarcerated people's first formal discipline case. Findings tell us that, within Minnesota prisons, the differences in disciplinary outcomes are not solely the result of compositional differences in the people who are incarcerated or the types of cases that are seen. Findings also indicate that upstream decisions can have significant downstream consequences, suggesting a compounding effect. Policy implications and recommendations are also discussed.