Solitary: Inside Red Onion State Prison (Documentary)

Don't feel sorry for these offenders.
They earned that prison cell.
Don't be manipulated by their mind games.
They're right where they belong due to their actions in society.

It is hard to believe that these people have been in this place for years and years and still are right now. It is just unimaginable, it really is. I was in solitary for three days, it felt like three years. It's impossible to feel empathy because I can't even begin to imagine what it is like for these men to be in there for as long as they are and am.

Solitary is inhumane there should be a limit on how long they're in there

I would be pissed off to if they didn’t run mail yesterday😅

43:40

What I don't like is the sentences are so drastically different depending on what state you're in. It should be the same in every state. The guys that are too crazy put them down the rest of them they should be put to work all day long, they are just a tax burden to us.

Dawg I miss the woods

Honestly how tf do you even end up here?

1:04:47 why would the old man try to call the bluff on some dude like this????

@53:04 "get up there to that vent and play chess like...Like you're Bobby Fischer or something
Let that man out simply because he knows who Bobby Fischer is! 😂

Crazy

Makes me sad that a bunch of seemingly dimwitted rednecks are in charge of all these prisoners.

I was a C.O at Haynesville correctional center when they were building this. So glad I left that job.

There’s too much unnecessary B-roll in this documentary. It makes it distracting.

Every time I cut a Red Onion & tears appears in my eyes I think of these guys . I don’t feel sorry for them because they have committed unforgivable crimes but it’s just a reminder of how precious life is

Legend has it, Michael is still waiting for his piece of bread.

Not a good show. I wish they would be taken off the air.

Why don't they give them the death penalty instead of spending our money on them?

One day, in the future, we will look back on this kind of incarceration a bit like the way we now look back at medieval forms of 'justice' - with incredulity as to how we could have ever been so cruel.

I did 5 years at the (Pocahontas)green onion the twin of red onion(100 miles away). I now have post incarceration syndrome

Harrowing no hollywood 😊

If I were the warden I'd figure out a way to muffle those doors so that when someone decides that they want to kick them day and night, all you hear is a thud.

In the case of inmate Lars,I believe the state of Virginia has nothing but hypocritical sanctimonious pricks including their governor who can’t show empathy!!! If 2 men were disrespectful to their wife,mother,daughter,what would they Do?!!! Use their power,influence,badge,qualified immunity,making themselves the exception!!! I wouldn’t have given Lars life without the possibility of parole! Each case is different! So I’d consider his case carefully before deciding judgement! Unlike Randall still bragging about driving a stolen vehicle going 90 mph! Robs,Murders,then has excuses of upbringing and being high on drugs! In Randall’s case,Life without the possibility of parole!

12:38 Didn't know "how serious it was" while robbing people at gunpoint and living absolutely recklessly. Just die in prison at that point.

😢😢😢

27:26 Every single CO in this pic is fat faced and chinless and jawless

An idea. Talk to their victims see how their lives have changed as well. I realize HBO is only concerned with the criminals well being but for me these animals are right where they belong

When the man said "I didn't know that I was going to get 38 years for two armed robberies." What did you expect??? I bet those people that you robbed at Gunpoint feared for their lives and thought they were going to die. Did you think that you'd just get a slap on the wrist???

I did 10 years in Va dept of corrections. 192 days in confinement. I’ve been out for 6 years and have never recovered. I’m on disability for mental health issues because I can no longer leave my house

What year was this filmed?

Dennis Webb is still at red onion till this very day. Randy Via got moved to another prison. While I do think certain people belong in solitary indefinitely, I think the only reason Dennis Webb is still there is because he cut a warden rather than an inmate. I think keeping him in confinement for 30 years is overkill.

If you are a murder, pedophile, any crime towards children, rapist and any other horrible crime this is what you get!!!!! It’s a prison NOT a fucking hotel!

Tough to watch. I'm 45 now. Married. Children. A successful business. Employees that rely on me. Life wasn't always so easy.

Last year I had an MRI done, and when I was put into the big machine, I instantly freaked out and couldn't figure out why. Up until the test, I hadn't even thought of it being an issue. Even later that day, I couldn't figure out why I was claustrophobic. Beyond that, I'm especially sensitive to loud noises, especially beating and banging. Metal on metal.

It wasn't until watching one on these docs that I realized these issues are likely a result of prison time, and my time on solitary confinement.

That said, there are humans who cannot be around other humans without hurting them. Some humans cannot be amongst other people.

Inmates are more articulate than the guards.

My mom has worked in hospital for 38 years and has 9 years total inside the building roughly … that puts in perspective how long a 10 year sentence is.

38 years for two robberies welcome to a common wealth state 🫣🫣🫣🤔🤔

What's sad is I'm surrounded by people and feel.alone

Punishment is Violence

38 yrs for two armed robberies is outrageously insane that’s a corrupt judicial system

The least likable person in this documentary was that young correction officer, and to put that in perspective, there was a guy who shot an innocent man 6 times in the head...

I was in a detention suite here in the Uk for less than a day while waiting for interview and the guy in the next cell would not stop banging and shouting at the top of his lungs constantly for hours and the would stop for a couple of minutes and I would think it’s over then he would start again and if I could have got my hands on him I would have attacked with him with everything I had. That was one day . The psychological effects of these places will never be understood by the outside world . They should implement a quiet time under threat of punishment and set activities for anyone not in for murder or child crimes .

Well, should have kept your ASS In California! We don't Play here in VIRGINIA! "YOUR" America has got this Country Screwed up and you with 38 Years! 😂

Whats really crazy is how clean it is....😮😮😮 is this a fairly new prison????

Are all these lifers??

Tell you what. Give them some tvs and a Xbox or Playstation. Give them a constant supply of drugs like marijuana or pain killers and there ya go.

12:30. "I didnt how serious 2 arm robberies was". 😂. Dumb.