US Supreme Court Rejects Lawsuit by Texas Inmate Held 27 Years in Solitary Confinement

Members of the Supreme Court pose for a group photo at the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on April 23, 2021. Seated from left: Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, and Justices Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor. Standing from left: Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Elena Kagan, Neil Gorsuch, and Amy Coney Barrett. Erin Schaff/Pool/Getty Images

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from a Texas prisoner who was convicted of robbery but argued officials violated the constitutional ban on “cruel and unusual” punishment by submitting him to spend 27 years in solitary confinement.

Dennis Wayne Hope, the inmate, appealed a lower court ruling that argued he did not show whether his prolonged stay in solitary confinement violated the Constitution’s 8th Amendment. Hope is still in prison but was released from solitary last year.