Tag: JAIL
The City has reached a settlement over the class-action lawsuit championed by U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara over the deplorable conditions at Rikers Island. The agreement will lead to several reforms, including the instatement of a federal monitor over the Department of Corrections. From the Observer: “I have repeatedly made clear our unwavering commitment to enduring […]
One of the most tragic things about the case of Kalief Browder, the young man who committed suicide after being released from Rikers, was how preventable it was. Browder was arrested at 16, allegedly for having stolen a backpack, and waited there for a trial that took 3 years to throw out. One way to […]
Civil rights organizations are holding a vigil for Kalief Browder, the 22-year-old Bronx man who committed suicide this past weekend, 2 years after being released from Rikers. The vigil will take place at the Metropolitan Detention Complex on White Street at 6 PM, according to the organization’s Facebook page. Activists and those who want to […]
The New Yorker has released 6 minutes of security camera footage from inside Rikers, giving the public a rare and disturbing glimpse into the prison’s “deep-seated culture of violence,” as a report by the United States attorney in Manhattan called it. The video shows two incidents that happened to Kalief Browder, who was arrested in […]
One artist is bringing attention to the inhumane practice of solitary confinement by creating dream home of Black Panther activist Herman Wallace, who was alone in a cell for 41 years. Wallace, who was convicted of stabbing and killing a prison guard, was allowed to leave his cell for 1 hour a few times per […]
Last month, Police Commissioner William Bratton recommended increasing the penalty for resisting arrest from a misdemeanor to a felony. This was a bad idea then, and now the bad idea is spreading to the State Senate. Democrat Tony Avella of Queens has proposed a bill that would create a felony “aggravated resisting arrest” charge for […]
Two more horrifying complaints against the Department of Corrections and its contractors have recently been filed. DNAinfo reports that court documents claim a doctor at the Manhattan Detention Center told an inmate to “throw part of his severed middle finger in the garbage” after a corrections officer accidentally crushed it in an electronic door, and […]
Medical negligence is a huge problem at Rikers Island and New York City Council members are finally acknowledging it. At a criminal justice and Department of Health City Council hearing on Tuesday, council members slammed the private medical provider, Corizon, for its treatment of inmates at Rikers. The Observer reports: “‘The allegations that have mounted […]
Rikers Island: It’s New York City’s own Alcatraz-by-the-airport, with a storied and sordid history to match. Named one of America’s 10 worst penal institutions by Mother Jones, the medieval conditions in the jails on Rikers have drawn much-needed attention from the press, from the mayor’s office, and from federal authorities. Earlier this month, Mayor de […]
Just months after the Department of Investigation showed how easy it is to get drugs, razor blades, and vodka into Rikers, the New York Daily News reports that a visitor made it past “initial screening” with a 12.5-inch butcher knife. The knife was discovered later “in a secret compartment on the side of his knapsack.” […]
