Rikers Correctional Facility
Rikers Correctional Facility, one of the largest and most well-known jails in the United States, significantly impacts the correctional landscape. This directory offers articles and resources on the facility’s history, challenges, reforms, and broader implications for the correctional system. Understanding the complexities of Rikers is crucial for those studying or working in corrections. For related topics, explore our section on Correctional Facilities.
On average, just 11 of the 71 items, or 15%, that had tested positive for fentanyl in the field tests also tested positive in the lab, a Department of Investigation report states
“Officers Barbosa Jr., Stanislaus and McQueen are shining examples of what it means to be a DOC hero,” the NYCDOC commissioner said, adding their training averted a tragedy
A lawyer argued the city should be held in contempt as Rikers Island is “more violent and less safe” than when reforms began in 2015
The April 6, 2023, blaze, which injured 15 Rikers Island jail staffers and five inmates, was set by a 30-year-old inmate with a history of starting jailhouse fires
All NYCDOC body-worn cameras were pulled after a CO’s caught fire at the George R. Vierno Center on Rikers Island
Robert Boom, a 13-year NYDOC correction officer, collapsed on duty. Resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful.
The new jails are being built using the design-build format that is supposed to speed up construction, according to the city’s Department of Design and Construction
The suspension comes as the NYC DOC has expanded the use of body scanners in the jails to check staff for possible contraband
Rikers Island, NYC jails plagued with bugs, mice, cleanliness violations, says federal court monitor
Overall, inspectors found just 73 of 200 living areas were clean enough to comply with court requirements
Of the 50 incidents studied, pepper spray was used 24 times against mentally ill detainees, even though policy first requires consultation with mental health staff, the report said
The detainee blamed in the crash, a homicide suspect, got into the bus’s driver seat after a CO left the bus unattended outside the courthouse, the DOC said
One detainee was severely burned and several others suffered smoke inhalation in the April 6 fire, which the report confirmed was sparked by a detainee angry over losing personal possessions during a search
“I’ve never seen another human being look at someone like that, he had this look in his eyes, like you’re not getting out of here if you have a pulse,’” CO Kristen Lonnborg said
The federal monitor said the need for fire suppression is “particularly acute for a unit attempting to re-house known fire-setters and thereby reduce arsons”
“Practices for reporting stabbings/slashings are so unregulated that the monitor no longer has confidence in the accuracy of the department’s data in this area,” the monitoring team said
The Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center, a five-story jail barge with 800 beds, opened as a temporary measure in 1982 to relieve crowding on Rikers Island
A report two years into Mayor Adams’ administration reveals surging incidents of stabbings, slashings amid pervasive, imminent risk of harm at NYC jails
The report states there was also no captain on duty as a result of a staffing issue that left the Vierno Center eight captains short on the day the inmate died
Several inmates and around a dozen correction officers were treated for smoke inhalation; one inmate was burned so severely he was transported to the ICU
“Stabbings and slashing will exceed 300 this year with 6,000 uses of force — much high than other jail systems,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Powell said
The mental health clinician was stabbed in the face and arm; he was taken to the hospital where he needed stiches
The inmate walked around the jail wearing the stolen correctional officer uniform and pretended to conduct rounds
Another report earlier this month condemned conditions at jail facilities, citing mold and vermin-infested areas among other issues
New York City should be held in contempt over conditions in Rikers Island jail, federal monitor says
The monitor concludes in its report there has been “no meaningful relief” for staff or people in custody from violence and unnecessary and excessive uses of force
The court hearing came after a federal monitor overseeing the jails system outlined a pattern of disturbing incidents — including detainee deaths and grave injuries
Court-appointed violence monitor Steve J. Martin and his staff said that the jails are on pace for 350 stabbings and slashings in 2023
Court records show the inmate’s assault cases include slashing a CO with a pen, trying to attack an officer with a shiv and beating an officer with metal restraints
The federal monitor that oversees the city’s compliance with the decree has expressed concern about the Emergency Services Unit’s propensity for violence
Eliminating the post-high school education requirement was approved in an effort to grow the department’s applicant pool to counter a staffing decline
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