ALBANY, N.Y. — A new reform measure expanding the New York State Commission of Correction from three to five commissioners has been implemented, as advocates and lawmakers continue pushing for stronger oversight of the state’s correctional facilities following years of alleged abuse, violence and neglect.
In a May 11 press release, the Katal Center announced the implementation of reforms to the State Commission of Correction, increasing membership by adding two additional commissioner positions.
The State Commission of Correction is responsible for ensuring that all New York correctional facilities are “safe, stable, and humane.” For years, organizations have fought for greater accountability and oversight in correctional facilities.
“New York prisons have had a systemic pattern of violence and abuse for decades, with little to no oversight,” explained state Sen. Julia Salazar. “The SCOC was designed to provide oversight, but has not had the capacity or diverse expertise to do so. The Prison Reform Omnibus Bill rightfully expanded and diversified the Commission to address this problem.”
More than 20 years of suffering resulting from the independent body’s inability to maintain “safe, stable, and humane” facilities led more than 160 advocacy, community and faith-based organizations to petition Gov. Kathy Hochul to overhaul the SCOC.
The SCOC’s comprehensive review was mandated last year when Hochul signed the Jail and Prison Oversight Omnibus Bill into law, in part as a means of addressing the Commission’s history of failing to uphold its responsibilities. Rikers Island’s ongoing decline and the killings of Robert Brooks and Messiah Nantwi at Marcy and Mid-State prisons further fueled public outrage and calls for reform.
“For too long, our prisons have been plagued by staff abuse toward incarcerated individuals, with little to no recourse,” said Salazar. “Just last December, prison staff brutally murdered Robert Brooks, a young, Black man. And then a few months later, a different set of prison staff murdered Messiah Nantwi, another young, Black man. These are just two men whose murders we are aware of, but there are plenty of others whose names we will never know.”
Too often, the deaths of incarcerated individuals are disregarded and minimized. This past year, at least 14 people died while detained in New York City jails, and since Eric Adams became mayor in 2022, at least 47 people have died while in the custody of the Department of Correction.
The watchdog agency, contrary to its name, had not, in fact, maintained effective oversight of New York correctional facilities or ensured that each facility was being operated in a lawful, safe and humane manner.
The Jail and Prison Oversight Omnibus Bill, proposed as a remedy for the SCOC’s alleged neglectful conduct, included reforms such as “requiring the SCOC to conduct mandatory annual inspections of every state correctional facility, local jail, and Office of Children and Family-operated juvenile detention center; creating more accessible grievance procedures, requiring the SCOC to maintain a website to accept written complaints from the public; and establishing authority for the SCOC to conduct private interviews of prison employees, accompanied by counsel or union representative; and private interviews of incarcerated individuals upon the individual’s consent and with counsel present if desired.”
Under the newly-instituted reforms, at least one commissioner must be a formerly incarcerated person, and at least one commissioner must either be a health care professional, have experience advocating for the rights of incarcerated individuals as a legal policy professional or attorney, or work in a profession “relevant to the promotion of an efficient, humane, and lawful correctional system.”
This diversification of experiences and perspectives is intended to reduce the consequences incarcerated individuals experience because of the SCOC’s alleged incompetence; however, Hochul has yet to appoint the two new commissioners.
Currently, the SCOC has two full-time commissioners, leaving one full-time and two part-time positions vacant, rendering the Commission inoperable.
“…new laws are only as effective as their implementation,” Assemblymember Emily Gallagher stated. “If she is serious about respecting the law and ending the crisis in our prisons and jails, the Governor must fill the SCOC vacancies with reform-minded commissioners who are committed to the health, safety, and dignity of incarcerated people, including one who is formerly incarcerated.”