FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 9, 2025
Contact: Yonah Zeitz: yonah@katalcenter.org • 347-201-2769
Follow on socials @KatalCenter • #ShutRikers #CutShutInvestNY
Today, Another Person Died in DOC Custody, At Least the 8th Death this Year
Death Comes as Jail Oversight Legislation, Passed by Legislature, Awaits Gov. Hochul to Sign
New York, NY: Today, news broke that Christian Collado, 51 years old, died while in custody of the New York City Department of Correction. Mr. Collado had Stage 4 cancer and was being treated in the Bellevue Hospital Prison Ward. This is the eighth person to die in DOC custody this year; at least 41 people have died since Eric Adams became mayor in 2022.
On June 12, the New York Legislature passed an omnibus corrections oversight bill, S.8415 (Salazar)/A.8871 (Dilan), that includes overhauling the government watchdog—the State Commission of Correction—with authority over local jails and state prisons, including Rikers Island. The bill is currently awaiting Governor Kathy Hochul’s signature.
Statement from Katal Center
Yonah Zeitz, Advocacy Director at the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice: “We send our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of Christian Collado. Mr. Collado is the eighth person to die in DOC custody this year, surpassing last year’s death toll, and at least 41 people have died since Eric Adams became mayor in 2022.
We know that under Mayor Adams violence has increased in city jails and dysfunction reigns supreme. Incarcerated people’s rights are consistently violated, and they are not getting the appropriate physical and mental health care. There is a state body – the State Commission of Correction (SCOC) – which is tasked with ensuring the safety and well-being of incarcerated people and should be conducting investigations and using its broad power to protect people in NYC jails. But for decades, the SCOC has failed to meet this responsibility. Currently, a bill is awaiting Gov. Hohcul’s signature that will increase correctional oversight by overhauling the SCOC. With lives at stake, the Governor must immediately sign this bill into law.”
Background: #ShutRikers is a campaign of the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice. Katal members, supporters, and our allies are working to cut the correctional populations and the budgets used for caging people; shut down Rikers Island; and invest in real public safety: housing, health care, education, and jobs.
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