78 ORGANIZATIONS DENOUNCE ADAMS BUDGET PROPOSALS IN CITY COUNCIL LETTER
By: Communities United for Police Reform via Black Star News New York, NY – Wednesday, 78 organizations sent a letter calling on Speaker Adrienne Adams and the City Council to end the Mayor’s approach of unilaterally shrinking critical services while expanding the role of the NYPD and preserving NYPD budget bloat. The Mayor’s approach to […]
Why Are Slashings Surging in City Jails? We Asked Four People With Inside Knowledge.
By: Reuven Blau via The City The figures are grim: There were 477 stabbings and slashings in New York City jails last year. That’s up from 420 in 2021 and 121 in 2020, according to correction department records obtained by THE CITY. There were just 40 in 2017. Many of the victims and culprits are […]
Inmate Deaths, Threat Of Federal Takeover Will Determine The Fate Of Rikers Island
By: Alan J. Krawitz via African American Voice NEW YORK — Rikers Island jail is waging its own war. At issue is whether a federal receiver takes the reins of the jail from New York City’s control. The next hearing on Rikers’ fate is in April. However, on Nov. 17, a federal judge declined the request from […]
Deadly year in Rikers with 19 deaths in DOC custody
By: Tandy Lau via Amsterdam News Edgardo Mejias is the 19th person to die in—or shortly after in—Department of Corrections (DOC) custody this year. The 39-year-old was pronounced dead at the Anna M. Kross Center on Rikers Island this past Sunday, Dec. 11 at approximately 5 p.m. “Mr. Mejias’ passing fills our hearts with sadness, […]
Inmate Deaths, Threat Of Federal Takeover Will Determine The Fate Of Rikers Island
By; Alan J. Krawitz via Zenger NEW YORK — Rikers Island jail is waging its own war. At issue is whether a federal receiver takes the reins of the jail from New York City’s control. The next hearing on Rikers’ fate is in April. However, on Nov. 17, a federal judge declined the request from lawyers, criminal-justice advocates […]
Manhattan Judge Rules Against Fed Takeover of Ailing Rikers Island
By: Serach Nissim via The Jewish Voice On Thursday, a Manhattan Federal Judge ruled against a federal takeover of the City’s troubled jail complex, keeping it under NYC’s control for now. As reported by the NY Post, U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain turned down a legal plea made by the Legal Aid Society, […]
Protesters demand feds take over Rikers as federal judge’s decision looms
By: Roger Stern and Brian Brant via 1010 Wins NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — It wasn’t just about who controls Rikers Island, though protesters in Foley Square said they want a federal takeover — it’s about closing the jail for good. Melanie Dominguez, who spoke at the Katal Center for Equity, Health and Justice rally on Thursday, is […]
Federal Judge Kicks Rikers Receivership Question Down Road
By Reuven Blau via The City Despite a spike in violence and deaths in city jails, a federal judge Thursday rejected demands from inmate advocates to strip control of jails from the City Hall by transferring the Department of Correction to a “receiver.” Laura Taylor Swain, the chief judge for the U.S. District Court for […]
Judge rules to allow NYC to continue attempts to reform Rikers Island
By Eyewitness News via ABC7NY LOWER MANHATTAN (WABC) — A federal judge will allow the city to continue in its attempts to reform Rikers Island, concluding that putting the troubled jail in receivership would be premature. Corrections Commissioner Louis Molina admitted to the judge during a hearing in federal court Thursday that there are problems, but […]
Opinion: Rikers Crisis Demands Federal Receiver
By: gabriel sayegh via City Limits Like a fire out of control, the crisis continues in New York City’s jail system, especially at Rikers Island. So far this year, 18 human beings have died in the city’s jails—the most since 2013, when twice as many people were behind bars there. The New York Times now maintains […]
