FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, May 14, 2025
Contact: Yonah Zeitz, yonah@katalcenter.org • 347-201-2769
Follow on socials @KatalCenter • #ShutRikers
Katal Center Testifies at Joint Public Hearing on the Crisis Unfolding in State Prisons
To Increase Oversight & Accountability Over State Prisons Across New York, the Legislature Must Pass S.856 (Salazar) / A.2315 (Gallagher) to Overhaul the State Commission of Correction
Albany, NY – Today, the Senate Standing Committee on Crime Victims, Crime & Correction and the Assembly Standing Committee on Correction held a Joint Public Hearing: Safety of Persons in Custody, Transparency, and Accountability within State Correctional Facilities. Katal member Ziyadah Amatulmatin is testifying before the committee about her family’s experience with incarceration in New York, and will call on lawmakers to pass S.856/A.2315. See Ziyadah’s testimony here.
With the recent killing of Robert Brooks and Messiah Nantwi in state prisons, this is a critical moment to overhaul oversight and accountability. The State Commission on Correction (SCOC) is an independent body mandated with the constitutional authority to ensure that correctional facilities across New York – all local jails and state prisons – are “safe, stable and humane.” But for more than 20 years the SCOC has consistently failed to meet its responsibility
S856 (Salazar) /A2315 (Gallagher would expand and strengthen the SCOC. The bill is already moving – yesterday, the New York State Senate Committee on Finance voted to advance S.856 (Salazar).
Support for this legislation is growing with nearly 100 community, faith, and advocacy organizations across the state calling on legislators to fix the SCOC by ensuring it meets its mandate. The SCOC declined to testify at today’s public hearing amidst this ongoing crisis in the states correctional facilities.
Statement from Katal member Ziyadah Amatulmatin:
“Our incarcerated loved ones are being abused, mistreated, medically neglected, and murdered in prisons across New York. My brother Ramadan Mubarak Ibn Abdul-Mateen passed away at Wende Correctional Facility from lack of medical care and excessive force at the hands of correctional officers. My son, who is currently incarcerated, is also experiencing the same horrific conditions. He’s been starved, medically neglected, and physically abused. I’ve had to continuously advocate and fight for his safety. Families should not have to live in constant fear of losing their loved ones behind bars. We deserve better. I thank Senator Julia Salazar and Assemblymember Eric Dilan for holding today’s joint legislative hearing on the crisis unfolding in state prisons. Now, the legislature must take action. In the final stretch of the session, the Senate and Assembly must pass S.856-(Salazar) / A.2315-(Gallagher) to increase oversight and overhaul the State Commission of Correction (SCOC). This legislation will fix the SCOC by bringing greater accountability so that it meets its mandate with regard to prison oversight throughout the state. Lives are at stake, and the clock is running out. Our families and communities deserve better.”
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