Uptick in prison suicides cries out for humane solution

Boston Globe
November 23, 2025
The Editorial Board

Six apparent suicides in Massachusetts state prisons this year, the most recent four in the space of little over two months, is more than just a statistic. It’s a wake-up call — that at a time when the prison population is relatively low, something is very wrong inside the walls.

Prisoners’ rights advocates point to the persistent presence of a potent drug with a history of a serious risk of suicide, a lack of addiction treatment opportunities, and a punitive approach to dealing with substance abuse largely based on isolation.

“This has been coming to a boil for over a year,” Dave Rini, executive director of Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts, told the editorial board.

“Among the more recent challenges has clearly been an influx of K2, and the fact that the Department of Correction’s response has been particularly punitive,” Rini said.

Read more at: Bostonglobe.com.