The Independent Commission on New York City Criminal Justice and Incarceration Reform was formed in New York City in March 2016 with two dozen experts, policymakers, and advocates from a broad variety of backgrounds, including those who have spent time behind bars. In April 2017 the Commission released its recommendations and called for closing Rikers and replacing it with smaller jails in the city’s five boroughs. Just prior to the report’s release, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, reversed his prior position that closing Rikers Island Jail was not feasible, and announced his support for closing Rikers, but he said it will take a decade.
What’s Happening at Rikers Island
The production of RIKERS: AN AMERICAN JAIL was informed by excellent investigative journalism and media coverage of conditions at Rikers Island. Find some examples of that coverage below.
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Press Coverage on Closing Rikers
New York Daily News
AS POLS MULL CLOSING RIKERS, NEW YORKERS OVERWHELMINGLY SUPPORT REFORMING JAIL SYSTEM: SURVEY
BY REUVEN BLAU, APRIL 6, 2017
A new poll finds that a large majority of New York City residents back a series of criminal justice reforms aimed at reducing the number of people behind bars. The reforms are part of a plan put forth by an independent commission that recommends shutting down the Rikers Island, the city’s sprawling jail complex.
The New York Times
WHAT IS RIKERS ISLAND?
BY MICHAEL SCHWIRTZ, APRIL 5, 2017
The New York Times has been reporting on the problems at Rikers Island, as well as the New York City Correction Department, which oversees the jail. In this brief primer, the Times examines the history of violence at Rikers Island, efforts by Mayor Bill deBlasio to end its brutal culture and why the city has decided to shutter the facility, as well as next steps.
Mother Jones
NYC CAME UP WITH A BRILLIANT STRATEGY FOR CUTTING ITS JAIL POPULATION IN HALF
BY MADISON PAULY, APRIL 5, 2017
Many of the individuals who are held at Rikers Island are “not threats to public safety,” according to Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, “what they are is poor.” To reduce pretrial detention, the independent commission headed by Lippman proposes ending the use of money bail entirely, which would require legislative action. Mother Jones examines this and other bail-related recommendations.
The New York Times
RIKERS ISLAND COMMISSION UNVEILS PLAN TO SHUT DOWN JAIL COMPLEX
BY NICK CORASANITI, APRIL 2, 2017
A year after an independent commission was tasked with studying Rikers Island, the group, led by Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, released its recommendations for closing the jail complex. A cornerstone of the commission’s proposals are measures aimed at cutting the number of inmates held at any given time from the current average of 10,000 to 5,000 within ten years. It also proposes ending the “mass incarceration” model in NYC by building five smaller prisons.
New York Law Journal (registration required)
RIKERS REVIEW PANEL CALLS FOR CLOSURE, COURT REFORMS
BY ANDREW DENNEY, MARCH 31, 2017
Along with proposals aimed at shutting Rikers Island, the independent commission that studied New York City’s criminal justice system recommends changes to the courts, including bail reform and expedited handling of cases, as well as alternatives to incarceration. The New York Law Journal covers these recommendations here.
Coverage that informed film production
Here is some outstanding journalism that informed the production of RIKERS: AN AMERICAN JAIL.
Politico
Lippman Announces Members of Criminal Justice Commission
by Gloria Pazmino, March 17, 2016
The independent commission led by New York’s former chief judge Jonathan Lippman and tasked with reforming New York City’s criminal justice system, announces the 26 members that will join the group. The members come from criminal justice reform organizations, community groups, the judiciary, the defense bar, academia, corrections, advocacy groups and the business community. The commission was established at the request of New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, who has also tasked it with considering the possibility of closing Rikers Island.
Politico
De Blasio Budget Includes Millions to Build new Jail for Adolescent Inmates
by Colby Hamilton, April 26, 2016
NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio’s new budget includes $170 million to identify and renovate an existing jail or, if necessary, build a new one for adolescents in the city, according to the executive budget for Fiscal Year 2017. It is not yet clear whether the facility will again be on Rikers Island or located elsewhere. The move is part of reform efforts focused on incarcerated adolescents included in a 2015 legal settlement over abuses at Rikers Island. The budget also provides funding to create space for programming for older inmates, such as GED classes, work force training, substance abuse and life skill classes.
The New York Times
‘Time in the Box’: Young Rikers Inmates, Still in Isolation
by Michael Winerip and Michael Schwirtz, July 7, 2016
A year and a half after New York City officials announced they would eliminate solitary confinement at Rikers Island for inmates under age 22 by January 2016, the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio is facing challenges in fulfilling the promise. Most of the 78 young adults who were in isolation at the beginning of 2016 have been moved out. But, according to Correction Commissioner Joseph Ponte, because of disciplinary issues, nine remained. In this article, the Times interviews several of the under age 22 inmates, still in isolation.
The New York Times
City Report Suggests Progress in Effort to Curb Violence at Rikers Island
by Samantha Schmidt, August 2, 2016
In the first half of the year at Rikers Island, there was a substantial drop in the use of force on detainees resulting in serious injuries, according to New York City’s Department of Corrections. Correction officers used force 39 times resulting in serious injuries to detainees, compared to 72 times in the first half of 2015. Assaults by detainees on staff members dropped 20 percent to 394 episodes during the first six months of 2016. The department said total episodes involving the use of force fell 2 percent to 2,223, the first drop since 2011.
The New York Times
City to Pay $5.75 Million Over Death of Mentally Ill Inmate at Rikers Island
by Benjamin Weiser, September 27, 2016
The city of New York will pay $5.75 million to settle a lawsuit brought after the 2013 death of Bradley Ballard, a mentally ill Rikers Island detainee who was found naked and covered in urine and feces after being locked in his cell for six days. Following Ballard’s death, The State Commission of Correction, a prison watchdog agency, found that Ballard, 39, was not given his medication for diabetes and schizophrenia and lacked running water in his cell.
The Daily News
NYC correction officers sue city, claim their complaints of jail violence are ignored
by Barbara Ross, October 18, 2016
New York City Correction officers are suing the mayor, the City Council and the city Board of Corrections charging they are not receiving the attention they deserve about jail conditions because there is too much focus on inmate complaints. The president of the Corrections Officers Benevolent Association, Elias Husamudeen, said in court papers that the board is ignoring the City Charter, which requires them to investigate both inmate and guard complaints. Husamudeen claims that detainee violence against officers has surged since the de Blasio administration virtually ended the use of solitary confinement for inmates under the age of 22.