Fed Up: City held in contempt over jail conditions as federal judge favors receivership
By Tandy Lau from Amsterdam News Published on December 5, 2024 Federal judge Laura Taylor Swain held the City of New York in civil contempt last Wednesday, Nov. 27 for failing to properly implement court-ordered reforms in city jails, particularly on Rikers Island, stemming from a 2012 class action lawsuit over unconstitutional detainee conditions. The […]
Judge ‘Inclined’ to strip city of control of Rikers Island
By Jacob Kaye from the Queens Daily EaglePublished on November 27, 2024 A federal judge said that she was leaning toward taking the extreme measure of stripping the city of its control of Rikers Island after ruling on Wednesday that the Department of Correction violated over a dozen court orders by failing to keep detainees […]
Judge holds NYC in contempt over worsening conditions on Rikers, says Federal takeover likely
By Chris Sommerfeldt from the Daily News Published on November 27, 2024 A federal judge held New York City’s government in contempt of court Wednesday for failing to improve conditions on Rikers Island — and her scathing ruling says she’s now “inclined” to place the city’s entire correctional system under federal control. In her bombshell […]
Advocates renew calls to close Rikers Island as possible federaltakeover looms
By Courtney Gross from Spectrum News NY1 Published September 25, 2024 Lawyers for prisoners on Rikers Island continued in court Wednesday to make the same arguments they have for years — that a massive overhaul is needed to make the city’s jails safer, and a federal judge must appoint a receiver to get real change. […]
Judge directs NYC to develop plan for possible federal takeoverof Rikers Island jail
By Philip Marcelo via AP News NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday directed New York City officials to begindeveloping a plan for a possible federal takeover of Rikers Island, following a hearing inManhattan in a long-running case over abuse, mismanagement and other chronic problems at oneof the nation’s largest and most notorious […]
Advocates renew call for Rikers Island closure as judge’s decision on possible federal takeover looms
By Dean Moses via AMNY Criminal justice advocates rallied in Lower Manhattan Wednesday to demand the closure of Rikers Island as a federal judge mulls whether to hand over the city correctional facility to a federal receiver. Judge Laura Taylor Swain held a Sept. 25 at the federal courthouse and was poised to decide whether […]
NYC judge orders DOC and civil rights lawyers to flesh outplan to restructure how jails are ru
By Molly Crane-Newman & Graham Rayman via NY Daily News A Manhattan federal judge on Wednesday directed top Department of Correction leadership and civil rights attorneys representing Rikers Island detainees to flesh out a plan to restructure how the city’s jails are run amid staggering and increasing levels of brutality. Chief Judge Laura Swain issued […]
Renewed push on to close Rikers Island
Interview by: Zinnia Maldonado via CBS News CBS News New York’s Zinnia Maldonado has new details aboutthe death of an inmate two years ago. She spoke to his family’sattorney on Wednesday.
Rikers Island detainee dies after apparent medical episode, marks fifth death in jails this year
Ben Brachfeld, via AMNY A person detained on Rikers Island became the fifth person held in city jails to die this year, passing away at a Queens hospital Tuesday morning after an apparent medical episode. The Department of Correction said that Anthony Jordan, 63, was rushed from the jail complex’s North Infirmary Command to Mount […]
Personnel shakeup proposed at prison oversight commission
David Lombardo, via Capitol Press Room A group of progressive criminal justice advocates and Democratic state lawmakers are hoping to reform the state Commission of Correction so that it has more members and more diverse backgrounds. Yonah Zeitz, director of advocacy with the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice, discusses how new personnel at the oversight […]
