FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, July 26, 2026
Contact: Yonah Zeitz: yonah@katalcenter.org • 347-201-2769
Follow on socials @KatalCenter • #ShutRikers #CutShutInvestNY
Another Tragic Death in DOC Custody, the 5th Incarcerated Person to Die Under the New Mayoral Administration
Katal Center Calls for Remediation Manager and State Commission of Correction to Intervene to Save Lives & Shut Rikers Down
New York, NY – Yesterday, news broke that yet another person has died in the custody of the NYC Department of Correction (DOC). As reported in Gothamist, Julian Pagan, 29, died in custody in the Bronx. Mr. Pagan is at least the fifth person to die in DOC custody since Zohran Mamdani became mayor in 2026.
Statement by Yonah Zeitz, advocacy director of the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice:
“First, we send our deepest condolences to the family of Julian Pagan — no family should have to go through this.
We’re extremely concerned about the dangerous conditions within the NYC Department of Correction. Conditions at Rikers in particular are so horrific that last year, a federal judge ordered for a ‘remediation manager’ to take over parts of jail operations and oversight. This move is among the most dramatic a court can take, and indicates the severity of the problem at Rikers. It also underscores the abject failure of City government to address the crisis and save lives.
It also highlights the failures of the state government. New York State has an entire agency dedicated to oversight of jails and prisons in the state, to ensure they are “safe, stable, and humane.” That agency, the State Commission on Correction, has failed miserably to meet its mandate. Reforms were passed last year that should compel the agency to meet its mandate, but Governor Hochul continues to drag her feet to implement those reforms.
Now, months after Mayor Mamdani has appointed a reform-oriented commissioner, months after the appointment by the federal court of a remediation manager, and months after the reforms to the SCOC were passed, yet another person has died in DOC custody. What are these officials doing? Whatever it is, it’s not enough. Katal members, many of whom have served time at Rikers or had loved ones detained there, are clear: the city government, state government, and the federal court must take immediate, robust action to meet the legal mandate to shut down Rikers, and until it shut down, to improve conditions and save lives. Anything less is unacceptable.”
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#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 community safety: housing, health care, including mental health, education, and jobs.
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