Protecting the Rights of Incarcerated Parents to Hug Their Children

Among the many societal harms of our prison and jail system is the damage that having an incarcerated parent wreaks on the family and children of the person on the inside. Traditionally, the most important way to relieve this harm is through family visits where the incarcerated person can see their family in person and hug their child. Decades of research shows that these visits promote the parent-child bond and result in better social outcomes for the children, make jails and prisons safer by providing critical social supports to the people housed there, and promote rehabilitation when people are released from incarceration by preserving the family ties essential to their reintegration into society. Unfortunately, in recent years, some jails have stopped allowing in-person family visits, and instead now have a policy of family visits only through electronic teleconferencing provided by for-profit corporations that kick back significant chunks of their profits to pad jail budgets. Such visits are often plagued by glitchy internet connections and come at significant expense to families already suffering from the economic impact of having a loved one incarcerated. As such, research shows that replacing in-person visits with teleconference calls does not accomplish any of the benefits of family visitation. In March 2024, our partners at Civil Rights Corps, Public Justice, and the law firm of Pitt McGehee filed lawsuits in Genesee County and St. Clair County against two jails (and the associated telecom companies selling such services) who implemented these inhumane policies, arguing that the policies violated both parents’ and children’s fundamental right under the Michigan Constitution to associate with each other. The circuit courts in both counties dismissed the cases, and the plaintiffs appealed to the Michigan Court of Appeals. In January 2025, we led efforts to file an amicus brief in the St. Clair County case, explaining how these policies caused immense harm to families and to the public at large.  Our brief was joined by eighteen other organizations and individuals from across the political spectrum: the Cato Institute, the American Federation of Teachers Michigan, the Criminal Law and Children’s Law Sections of the State Bar of Michigan, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Michigan Center for Youth and Justice, the Detroit Justice Center, Safe & Just Michigan, the Michigan Coalition for Human Rights, the Michigan State Planning Body, the National Lawyers Guild Michigan-Detroit Chapter, Black Lives Matter Port Huron, Street Democracy, Prison Policy Initiative, Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, Inc., Dr. Rebecca Shalger, Prof. Margo Schlanger, and Prof. Vivek Sankaran.  We filed a similar brief in August 2025 in the Genesee County case. Briefing has closed and a decision is pending.  (M.M. v. King [St. Clair County] and S.L. v. Swanson [Genesee County]; ACLU Cooperating Attorney Prof. Paulina Arnold; ACLU Attorneys Phil Mayor, Dan Korobkin, and Bonsitu Kitaba-Gaviglio.  Numerous counsel from our co-amici not listed for brevity.)