A federal court could soon take control of New York’s most notorious prison, which has housed the likes of Tupac, Sid Vicious, and currently – Harvey Weinstein.
Chief U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain found the prison was in contempt of orders to improve the ‘grave’ conditions inside.
‘Those who live and work in the jails on Rikers Island are faced with grave and immediate threats of danger, as well as actual harm, on a daily basis,’ Judge Swain said.
Each prisoner in New York costs the state $400,000 a year – nearly six times more than the average in the United States.
But even with the hefty price tag, the conditions inside have repeatedly worsened over the years.
Some inmates previously said the prison was rampant with mice, the smell of sewage and lacked basic care. Pools of water were reported as well.
There were 6,784 incidents of use of force at the jail in 2023, up from 4,652 in 2016, according to figures the judge cited. Thirty-three people have died in custody since 2022.
Harvey Weinstein has been at Rikers since earlier this year, but his lawyers issued a claim for his maltreatment in the facility.
His attorney Imran Ansari said: ‘When I last visited him, I found him with blood spatter on his prison garb, possibly from IV’s, clothes that had not been washed for weeks, and he had not even been provided clean underwear – hardly sanitary conditions for someone with severe medical conditions.’
Its reputation for brutality and neglect has been the subject of multiple calls for reform over the years.
The New York City Council voted for its closure in 2019, aiming to replace it with four smaller, more humane jails.
The deadline for Rikers to stop operating was given as August 2027, but officials have already admitted this may not be realistic.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, some dire pictures emerged from inside the Otis Bantum Correctional Center on Rikers Island.
Up to 26 men were squeezed into temporary holding cells, having to use plastic sheets as blankets, cardboard for beds, and plastic bags as makeshift toilets.
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