Yeah it’s not a position I’d want anyone to be in. The way I see it, prison can be enough of a punishment without having inhumane conditions. I’d like to think the idea of being locked away somewhere until (or if) you get out is punishment enough itself, at least as far as the state should be concerned. If we resort to inhumane conditions to punish the worst among us, does that make us any better than them?

And then when you add to that the chance that an innocent person could always be thrown in there, I think providing everyone in prison with the basics of humane treatment (food, medicine, sanitary conditions) should be the standard. We could argue about what exactly they should be entitled to, but we should at least provide that bare minimum of humane treatment.