Rikers Island, which has long drawn ire over its conditions, won't be within New York City's purview during the transition.
A federal judge took the rare move to seize control of New York City's infamous Rikers Island prison complex on Tuesday.Why It MattersAdvocates for years have raised concerns over the conditions at Rikers.
Dozens of inmates have died at the complex over the years, with at least five this year, fueling calls for the prison to be shut down.What To KnowU.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain on Tuesday handed down a 77-page ruling seizing control of the prison. A 'remediation manager' will be appointed to oversee the complex and report directly to the court, rather than New York City Mayor Eric Adams, according to the decision.The ruling states that Swain concluded the last nine years 'leave no doubt that continued insistence on compliance with the Court's orders by persons answerable principally to political authorities would lead only to confrontation and delay' and that the 'current management structure and staffing are insufficient to turn the tide within a reasonable period.'The appointed official will be 'empowered to take all actions necessary' to address concerns at Rikers, she wrote.'The Court expects that the Remediation Manager and the Commissioner of the Department of Correction will work as collaboratively as possible to achieve remediation of the Contempt Provisions and compliance with the Consent Judgment, including by building upon the progress that has been achieved since the current Commissioner took office,' the ruling reads.The decision originated from a 2011 class action lawsuit, Nunez v. City of New York, that accused the New York City Department of Correction of routinely using excessive and unnecessary force in its jail facilities. In 2015, the case settlement allowed for federal oversight of the prison.What People Are SayingAdams said during a news conference on Tuesday that the city will comply with the order: 'If the federal judge made the determination that they want to do something else and they don't like what we're doing, it's a federal judge. We're going to follow the rules. What I'm hoping is with this announcement that the federal judge will look at some of these laws. The laws that state we can't handcuff dangerous inmates when we transfer them.'An Adams spokesperson pointed to these remarks when reached by Newsweek.The Legal Aid Society wrote in a statement: 'We commend the court's historic decision to appoint an independent receiver to end the culture of brutality in the City's jails. For years, the New York City Department of Correction has failed to follow federal court orders to enact meaningful reforms, allowing violence, disorder, and systemic dysfunction to persist in the jails. This appointment marks a critical turning point—an overdue acknowledgment that City leadership has proven unable to protect the safety and constitutional rights of incarcerated individuals.'U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton wrote in a statement: 'The Court's findings and appointment of a remediation manager are a welcomed and much needed milestone. Rikers is not working, for its over 7,000 people in custody, the correction officers and staff who work there, or the people of New York. The Constitutional rights of people in custody are not being protected.'What Happens NextRikers Island must close by 2027 and be replaced by new jails, per legislation passed by the New York City Council in 2019.Swain wrote that the changes will 'take some time,' but that she expects to see 'continual progress toward these goals so that control of use of force and related policies and practices can be returned to the City and the DOC as quickly as possible.'
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