Mass. Gen. Laws » Part I Title XVIII Chapter 127
Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 127, § 22 (2026)

Separation of prisoners

✓ current as of July 2026
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Section 22. Male and female prisoners shall not be put or kept in the same room in a jail or house of correction; nor, unless the crowded state of the institution so requires, shall any two prisoners, other than debtors, be allowed to occupy the same room, except for work. Persons committed for debt shall be kept separate from convicts and from persons who are confined upon a charge of an infamous crime. Conversation between prisoners in different apartments shall be prevented. Minors shall be kept separate from notorious offenders and from persons convicted of an infamous crime. Persons committed on charge of crime shall not be confined with convicts, and prisoners charged with or convicted of a crime not infamous shall not be confined with those charged with or convicted of an infamous crime, except while at labor or assembled for moral or religious instruction, at which time no communication shall be allowed between prisoners of different classes.

Persons committed on a charge of a crime may participate in residential treatment or other rehabilitative programs with persons serving a criminal sentence; provided, however, that such person shall not be housed in the same cell with a person serving a criminal sentence. The commissioner of correction or, for a county facility, the sheriff shall adopt policies and procedures for the management of such participation consistent with public safety and the security and operational needs of the facility.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 4 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1993–2023 · leading case: DuPont v. Comm'r of Corr., 861 N.E.2d 744 (Mass. 2007).
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DuPont v. Comm'r of Corr., 861 N.E.2d 744 (Mass. 2007). “G. L. c. 127, § 22 (“Male and female prisoners shall not be put or kept in the *394 same room in a jail or house of correction .”
Smith v. Massimiano, 605 N.E.2d 292 (Mass. 1993). “The plaintiff, William Smith, who was not represented by counsel below and is unrepresented on appeal, seeks damages for injuries he claims to have sustained while, *82 as a pretrial detainee, he was housed with convicted criminals at the Berkshire County house of correction in…”
Darrin Whitman v. Carol a. Mici & Another. (Mass. App. Ct. 2023). · cites it 3× “In his complaint, the plaintiff requested a declaration and permanent injunction pursuant to G. L. c. 127, § 22, requiring the defendants to refrain from housing two inmates in the same cell.”
Jane J. v. Commonwealth (Mass. App. Ct. 2017). · cites it 2× “See, e.g., G. L. c. 127, § 22 ("Male and female prisoners shall not be put or kept in the same room in a jail or house of correction" [emphasis added]).”
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