BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — The Kern County Sheriff’s Office says it has dramatically reduced the use of solitary confinement in its jails, cutting the number of inmates held in restrictive conditions from about 300 to fewer than 10.
Officials said the inmates previously housed in restrictive conditions often spent nearly all day in their cells. The sheriff’s office credited expanded mental health care, new housing policies and additional rehabilitation programs for the reduction…