What Happens When More Than 300,000 Prisoners Are Locked Down?

When prisoners at four federal penitentiaries began rioting in the fall of 1995, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons did something it said was unprecedented: It imposed a nationwide lockdown, shutting tens of thousands of incarcerated people in their cells and dorms.

Lockdowns over COVID-19 are much bigger—and likely to last much longer. The federal system effectively locked down its 122 institutions, holding more than , in a move announced March 31. A few days later, Massachusetts announced similar measures; prisons in , , , and Texas all followed suit. By this week well over 300,000 prisoners were living in