A federal judge tasked with overseeing conditions on Rikers Island ruled Wednesday that New York City officials have failed to address violence and use of force in the jail complex, paving the way for a potential federal takeover.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain granted a request to hold the city in civil contempt, meaning that it had not complied with past court orders, and ordered the parties to devise an improvement plan in the next few weeks. She said she’s also inclined to impose receivership, which would mean that an outside party would take control of safety and use of force protocols at Rikers.
“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 as a direct result of Defendants’ lack of diligence,” Taylor Swain wrote, referring to the City of New York and its Department of Correction. She added “that the remedial efforts thus far undertaken by the Court, the Monitoring Team, and the parties have not been effective to alleviate this danger.”
The Legal Aid Society, which brought the lawsuit that sparked the ruling, called Taylor Swain’s decision “historic” and said it will “create a pathway for reform.”
“The court’s recognition that the current structure has failed, and that receivership free from political and other external influences is the path forward, can ensure that all New Yorkers, regardless of incarceration status, are treated with the respect and dignity guaranteed to them under the law,” the public defender organization said in a statement.
The mayor’s office, the city’s law department and the Department of Correction did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Nicholas Biase, a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office, declined to comment.