FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, November 27, 2024
Contact: Contact: Yonah Zeitz | 347-201-2768 | yonah@katalcenter.org
Follow on Twitter @KatalCenter | #ShutRikers | #CutShutInvestNY
Major Development In Federal Nunez Case: City held in Contempt, Judge is “Inclined to Impose Receivership” at Rikers
New York, NY: Today, in a major development in the Nunez v. N.Y.C. Department of Correction case, Federal Judge Laura Taylor Swain held the city in contempt for failing to address the constitutional violations at Rikers – and is “inclined to impose receivership”over the notorious jail complex.
This is the second time in as many years that the judge in the Nunez case has held the city in contempt of court for failing to meet court orders to improve conditions at Rikers. In the ruling today, the judge wrote, “use of force rate and other rates of violence, self-harm, and deaths in custody are demonstrably worse than when the Consent Judgment went into effect in 2015.”
In a historic first, the judge appears ready to move forward on appointing an independent federal receiver, writing, “the Court is inclined to impose a receivership: namely, a remedy that will make the management of the use of force and safety aspects of the Rikers Island jails ultimately answerable directly to the Court.”
Statements from impacted people and community and advocacy groups:
Tawana Atkins, Member of the Katal Center, said: “The devastating toll that Rikers has had on my family and so many others under the Adams Administration is unspeakable. My son has suffered severe injuries at the hands of correctional officers at Rikers. Violence at Rikers is running rampant. While fighting for my kid’s right to live, I continued to reassure him not to worry, that one day they were gonna be held accountable for what they have done. I am incredibly thankful that Judge Laura Taylor Swain has made the decision to hold the city in contempt for failing to keep incarcerated people safe and is ‘inclined to impose receivership’ at Rikers. This is what is needed to ensure that conditions at Rikers improve for everyone until it is closed once and for all.”
Sharon McLennon Wier, Ph.D., MSEd., CRC, LMHC, Executive Director for CIDNY, said: “The Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York (CIDNY) has been advocating for almost three and one-half years with many social justice advocates to ensure the rights of all the residents at Riker’s Island. CIDNY recognizes that 50% of the residents incarcerated at Riker’s Island have mental health disabilities. We know from receiving complaints that these residents are not always receiving accommodations for their disabilities which are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Providing federal receivership of Riker’s Island will finally allow for residents with disabilities incarcerated at Riker’s Island to obtain their human rights that they deserve.”
Kevin “Renny” Smith, Executive Director of Families and Friends of the Wrongfully Convicted, Inc., said: “The decision from the Court demonstrates that the voices and presence of those who stood in protest against the inhumane conditions at Rikers Island have not gone unheard and unnoticed. Until true justice rings, the struggle must continue.”
Stan Germán, Executive Director of the New York County Defender Services, said: “We are encouraged that the court is inclined to exercise receivership, which we expect to bring more stability, professionalism, and humanity to Rikers Island. The NYC Department of Corrections has been given every opportunity to reform itself over the years, and instead, we have watched Rikers Island spiral into chaos and incomprehensible cruelty. The time for intervention is long overdue.”
Victor Pate, co-director of the HALTsolitary Campaign, said: “In light of the recent decision of Judge Swan holding NYCDOC in contempt for the continued horrific conditions on Rikers Island, there’s been too much suffering and abuse and they need to release people, stop sending people to these deadly jails, and protect the human rights of all New Yorkers.”
Michael McQuillan, Member of the Social Justice Committee at the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue, said: “Judge Swain’s decision honors the humanity of those whose endurance of horrific conditions while awaiting their mere day in court. It testifies to the effective efforts of the Katal Center’s Shut Rikers Campaign and supports the City Council’s 2027 closure law that Mayor Adams has opposed. Receivership will restore professionalism and morality to management, ensuring that physical and mental health needs of detainees as well as the crumbling setting itself are addressed.”
Yonah Zeitz, Advocacy Director, Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice, said: “The language in the judge’s ruling mirrors what Katal members and partners have been saying for years: Rikers is a danger to people detained there and those who work there. The city under Mayor Adams is not following the law, not reducing violence, not advancing the jail closure plan but instead sending more people to be caged. Until Rikers is shut down, receivership is needed to improve conditions and save lives. That’s why nearly 90 organizations and dozens of elected officials and criminal justice leaders have joined the call for receivership at Rikers. So we’re pleased to see this ruling today, and call on the City Council to catch up to the court by passing Resolution 183, and start work with the court to shape what receivership will look like.”
Background: #ShutRikers is a campaign of the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice. Katal 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 public safety: housing, health care, education, and jobs.
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