Amnesty International describes their treatment:

Albert Woodfox, 64, and Herman Wallace, 69, were placed in "Closed Cell Restriction (CCR)" in Louisiana State Penitentiary - known as Angola Prison - since they were convicted of the murder of a prison guard in 1972.

 

Apart from very brief periods, they have been held in isolation ever since.

 

"The treatment to which Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace have been subjected for the past four decades is cruel and inhumane and a violation of the US’s obligations under international law," said Guadalupe Marengo, Americas Deputy Director at Amnesty International.

 

"We are not aware of any other case in the USA where individuals have been subjected to such restricted human contact for such a prolonged period of time."

 

Over the course of decades there has been no meaningful review of the men’s designation to CCR. The only reason given for maintaining the men under these conditions has been due to the "nature of the original reason for lockdown."

 

Both men were originally arrested for armed robbery.

 

The men are confined to their cells, which measure 2 x 3 metres, for 23 hours a day. When the weather permits, they are allowed outside three times a week for an hour of solitary recreation in a small outdoor cage.

 

For four hours a week, they are allowed to leave their cells to shower or walk, alone, along the cell unit corridor.

 

They have restricted access to books, newspapers and television. For the past four decades they have never been allowed to work or to have access to education. Social interaction has been restricted to occasional visits from friends and family and limited telephone calls.

 

 

 

From a 2008 NPR story:

Deep in the Louisiana hills, a long winding road dead ends at Angola, a prison unlike any other. It's the size of Manhattan, 30 miles from the nearest town, a place unto itself.

 

It was in this faraway place that a 23-year-old corrections officer was stabbed to death with a lawnmower blade in 1972. In the almost 40 years since, those are about the only details of the crime anyone can agree on.

 

Two men — Herman Wallace and Albert Woodfox — were quickly convicted of killing Brent Miller. A judge sentenced them to life; the prison put them in solitary confinement — for 36 years. It's the longest any inmate has spent in isolation in modern U.S. history. Now, all these years later, the murder seems even more unsettled and elusive than it did then, and there are questions about their guilt.

 

Also I'm pretty sure their prison model is based on Cool Hand Luke:

Here at Angola, the officers aren't called officers, or even guards. They're called Freemen. Just down the road is acre after acre of corn, soybeans and cotton. In the distance on this day, 100 black men toil, bent over in the field, while a single white officer on a horse sits above them, a shotgun in his lap.

Thirty six f***ing years?! With questions that they did it? God damn.

Thirty six f***ing years?! With questions that they did it? God damn.

 

Corrupt, racist prison and legal system? No way!

Corrupt, racist prison and legal system? No way!

 

I know, I know. But its like watching a nut-shot video. You know its gonna happen, still shocking to see.

 

On an unrelated note, my friends nickname in baseball was Cool Hand Luke. His name was Luke.