A federal judge has ordered the New York City jail chief to appear at an upcoming conference on the status of conditions at the Rikers Island prison complex. This after prosecutors said the situation had become so dire that it may be necessary to install judicial oversight over the beleaguered system in order to institute necessary reforms.
US District Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the city’s Department of Corrections Commissioner Louis Molina to attend the session scheduled for Tuesday.
He issued the order after receiving a letter earlier in the week from the office of US Attorney Damian Williams.
In the letter, prosecutors said, “Jails are in a state of crisis, inmates and staff are seriously injured, and action is desperately needed now,” questioning whether the city and corrections department had “the capacity, the experience and the will to quickly make the necessary changes to achieve true reform.”
Sixteen inmates died at Rikers last year and three have died so far in 2022.
Prosecutors continued to suggest more aggressive steps could be pursued, including creating an independent authority to implement reforms.
In her order issued Thursday, the judge noted “the seriousness and urgency of the security situation” and “the consequent need for clarity regarding planned changes and implementation.”
In a statement, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Molina “is laying the groundwork for long-term change.”
“Fixing Rikers is a vitally important, moral imperative, and we must get it right. But to do that, we need the opportunity to implement our plan,” he said. “These are generational challenges, deeply rooted, and no administration can solve them in less than four months. We look forward to continuing our close collaboration with the federal monitor and all other stakeholders.”
–
