Tens of millions of people are affected by a family member’s imprisonment and in many cases, family play a central role in providing practical and financial support. In contexts of economic crisis and rising costs of living, people in prison in many countries are more reliant on this support than ever before (see Impact of economic crisis on prisons), and this has been putting increasing pressure on families.
Aside from the economic hardship, visiting relatives can also lead to experiences of violence.
Associated costs with visiting someone in prison remain unaffordable for large segments of people affected. It is common for civil society or international organisations to be the only means to meet the price of transport and accommodation. PRI has recently facilitated visits for women in prison in Uganda, in some cases organising and paying for transport for relatives living as far as 900 kilometres away to their family members in prison who they had not seen for over five years. The costs involved for such visits can be between USD $30-70 which is unaffordable for family members.
Aside from the economic hardship, visiting relatives can also lead to experiences of violence. In Latin America, for example, female relatives have reported gender-based violence in searches and other measures that they are subjected to by prison staff when visiting male family members in prison. In Estonia, the NPM has repeatedly condemned that children in Tallinn Prison are forced to undergo a strip search when visiting their parents in prison.
Recent figures show that in one state, Colorado, nearly USD $9 million annually is spent by families to speak to loved ones in prison.
Families also face multiple costs in maintaining contact with loved ones in prison through paying to receive phone calls or loading money on phone accounts. Communication services in prisons tend to be monopolised by a few companies that charge unaffordable rates. In Spain, a newspaper revealed in early 2022 that if the maximum number and duration of phone calls is used by a detained person (15 8-minute calls), it would equate to around €150 per month (at a rate that has been reduced in 2020 because of the pandemic). Elsewhere, fixed prices have been set like in Puerto Rico (at $2.50 plus tax per call).
In France, the International Observatory of Prisons reports that 22% of the prison population are in ‘prison poverty’, with access to less than €50 a month, yet it can cost between €70-110 per month for a 20-minute daily call to a cell phone, or up to €25 for a 20-minute call abroad.
In the US, the prison phone industry has been at the centre of scandal for years. Campaigners for reform have centred around exposing the dominance of a few companies in the USD $1.4 billion industry, which has led to more regulation. US President Biden signed legislation in January 2023 that requires regulation on the price of in-state prison phone calls (an expansion on regulations requiring caps on interstate calls), as well as capping the price of video calls. Recent figures show that in one state, Colorado, nearly USD $9 million annually is spent by families to speak to loved ones in prison. Only two states in the country currently provide free phone calls for people in prison.
While there are many family support networks and groups set up by people affected by relatives’ imprisonment, typically these remain disconnected from prison systems. In Singapore, however, a new initiative in Changi prison is introducing an assessment of family support needs. It follows a trial that found the first and last six months of a family member’s imprisonment are periods of critical need, as well as the fact that family can be a ‘strong source of support’ to detainees.
Women disproportionately bear the burden of having a relative in prison, with debt and economic hardship being common.
A survey among 188 female relatives of detainees across seven Latin American countries as well as in Spain showed that a third of female partners, mothers or sisters were required to start working, and another third needed to work more hours or take on new jobs during that period. Nearly 90% surveyed reported not making ends meet or having any state aid, and a significant number supported their family member in prison through bringing essential items. The wider impacts of having a family member in prison were also evidenced with female relatives reporting they abandoned studies and no longer participated in social activities.
A new report from Scotland revealed that an average of £300 per month is spent on supporting a relative in prison during remand, which constitutes around half the average monthly income. During the prison sentence, support typically costs £180 per month (a third of the disposable monthly family income), and a day and a half per week of their time supporting their relative. The findings showed that the burden tends to particularly impact mothers and children.
There are estimated to be more than 22.5 million children globally with at least one imprisoned parent (over 21 million with a father in prison, and 1.4 million with an imprisoned mother), according to the International Coalition for Children with Incarcerated Parents. This constitutes over 1% of the world’s child population, with the highest rate in North America (4.8%) and lowest in Asia (0.6%) despite Asia having the highest absolute number of children affected by parental imprisonment, at 7.6 million children. An additional estimated 19,000 children live in prison with their mother.
An ever-growing body of evidence points to the significant impacts of parental imprisonment on childhood development, emotional and social well-being, and mental and physical health outcomes due to trauma, lack of appropriate healthcare, or both.
A report produced in Argentina in 2021 showed that, when compared to other children that live in similar situations but do not have a relative in prison, these children are poorer, are more likely to fall behind in school and of carrying out intense economic or domestic activities among other things. An inquiry on the topic from Australia recently also confirmed earlier statistics that parental imprisonment may increase a child’s risk of going to prison, although it pointed out that the risks of poorer outcomes are not inevitable; rather, ‘with good support at the right time the potential impacts of parental incarceration can be reduced or avoided’.
The UN Bangkok Rules stress that the best interest of the child should be considered when determining the length and location of a parent’s prison sentence but globally there is little progress on this. Some good practice on children’s rights to express their views to decisionmakers on sentencing of a parent have been identified in Norway and Sweden but, regionally, Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) has stressed that there are no basic common EU standards to systematically take into account the best interests of the child in pre-trial detention procedures. A recent positive development is the Recommendation of the European Commission in December 2022 encouraging Member States to allocate detainees in facilities as close as possible to their homes and to facilitate family visits under child-friendly conditions.
In March 2023, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Lithuania had violated the right to private and family life by restricting visits to a man held in pre-trial detention. Due to the restriction, the man was granted just one visit in nine months from his ten-year-old daughter and wife. In the judgment, the Court noted the relevant research on the importance for children of maintaining a bond with their imprisoned parents and that any decisions on visiting restrictions must take into the account the need to protect the family life, notably children.
Emerging data point to an increasing number of families having relatives serving prison sentences at the same time, including inter-generationally. Yet, the extent of this phenomenon and the impacts of it remain under-explored. In the US, for example, approximately half of black American women have at least one family member in prison. When it comes to visits, in most cases, prison systems do not have measures in place to allow visits, calls or even sending letters between family members in different prisons. A ruling of the Constitutional Court in Colombia on the issue led to protocols for regulating visits between family members in different prisons. In 2022, after a visit was denied between a same-sex couple housed in different prisons, the Court ruled that prison authorities should allow conjugal visits for detained same-sex partners.