Rikers detainee becomes 13th person to die in DOC custody
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A 38-year-old man on Rikers Island became the 13th person this year to die in Department of Correction custody, agency officials announced on Friday.
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‘Can’t rehabilitate Rikers’: Borough prez stands by jail closure plan after tour
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Despite seeing improvements during a recent visit to Rikers Island, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards says he believes no amount of refurbishment will be enough to justify keeping the troubled jail complex open – and that a federal takeover of the jail should remain on the table.
Rikers sees higher rates of mental health and violent felony charges, report finds
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Two distinct populations on Rikers Island grew more than any other over the past decade – detainees diagnosed with mental health issues and those facing violent felony charges, a new report found.
Read MoreMayor restores programming on Rikers months after cutting funding
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The Adams administration late Monday announced that it planned to mostly restore nonprofit-provided programming for detainees on Rikers Island after the city attempted – and largely failed – to provide the programming itself following a budget cut ordered by the mayor last year.
Read MoreMayor says city should fix Rikers, not court-appointed receiver
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In his first public comments since the Legal Aid Society officially asked a federal judge to strip control of Rikers Island away from the city, Mayor Eric Adams said that the troubled jail complex is better off in the city’s hands.
Read MoreLegal Aid officially files for federal takeover of Rikers Island
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Attorneys with the Legal Aid Society and prosecutors with the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York officially asked a federal judge on Friday to strip the city of its control over Rikers Island and hand the jail complex over to a federal authority.
Read MoreDOC agrees to restore Rikers video access to oversight body
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The watchdog board charged with keeping tabs on the New York City Department of Correction will again have the ability to view surveillance footage from inside the city’s jails remotely after the agency settled a lawsuit late last week.
Read MoreCorrectional officer union sues city
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The union representing correctional officers working on Rikers Island sued the Department of Correction this week, alleging the agency illegally told officers to speak with the federal monitor responsible for tracking violence in the jail.
Read MoreFour year countdown to Rikers’ closure begins
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Four years – as of Thursday, that’s exactly how long the city has to close its notorious jail complex on Rikers Island. Whether or not that deadline of Aug. 31, 2027 can be met by the city is another question entirely, and one whose answer is becoming increasingly unclear.
Read MoreGood government group calls for Rikers receivership
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Last week, good government group Citizens Union joined the a number of elected officials, advocates and others in calling for federal Judge Laura Swain to put the city’s notorious jail complex into a federal receivership, or a judicial order that could see the power to manage Rikers handed over to a court-appointed authority.
Read MoreRikers detainee dies: William Johnstone becomes sixth person in DOC custody to die this year
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For the sixth time this year and the third time in as many weeks, a person in the Department of Correction’s custody has died. William Johnstone, 47, was found unresponsive in the cell he was being held in on Rikers Island around 1:50 p.m. on Saturday, according to the Department of Correction.
Read MoreDetainee diagnosed with cancer dies in DOC custody
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Ricky Howell, 60, died in Bellevue Hospital of a terminal illness on Thursday, July 6, only a couple of days after 40-year-old man became the fourth Rikers detainee to die this year.
Read MoreCouncil grills DOC on drugs in city’s jail
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The New York City Council Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing to discuss the presence and prevalence of drugs in the city’s jails.
Read MoreDOC calls for less out-of-cell time for Rikers detainees
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Department of Corrections Commissioner Louis Molina is requesting permission to reduce out of cell time for a group of detainees by seven hours.
Read MoreDOC two months late on deadline to transfer part of Rikers Island
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The city has yet to issue any updates on the transfer of Rikers Island facilities to the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, after Mayor Eric Adams announced the July transfer would not happen.
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