for The New York Times: Outside Official Will Take Over Deadly Rikers Island Jail, Judge Orders by José A. Alvarado Jr.

News

for The New York Times: Outside Official Will Take Over Deadly Rikers Island Jail, Judge Orders

josé a. alvarado jr.

May 22, 2025

Summary

Laura Taylor Swain, a federal judge, seized control of New York City’s lockups, which have been rife with violence and dysfunction.

A federal judge overseeing New York City’s jails took Rikers Island out of the city’s control on Tuesday, ordering that an outside official be appointed to make major decisions regarding the troubled and violent jail complex.

The judge, Laura Taylor Swain, said in a 77-page ruling that the official would report directly to her and would not be a city employee, turning aside Mayor Eric Adams’s efforts to maintain control of the lockups. The official, called a remediation manager, would work with the New York City correction commissioner, but be “empowered to take all actions necessary” to turn around the city’s jails, she wrote.

“While the necessary changes will take some time, the court expects to see continual progress toward these goals,” Judge Swain wrote.The order comes nearly a decade after the city’s jails, which include the Rikers Island complex, fell under federal oversight in the settlement of a class-action lawsuit.

The agreement focused on curbing the use of force and violence toward both detainees and correction officers. A court-appointed monitor issued regular reports on the persistent mayhem.

Photographed for The New York Times, with words by Hurubie Meko.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/nyregion/rikers-island-receiver-nyc.html

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José A. Alvarado Jr.

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