NEW YORK, N.Y. (PIX11/NEWS10) – A federal monitoring report of NYC jails are at “high risk of harm” to inmates and staff. The conditions at the city-run correction facilities are “dangerous” and posing serious concerns.
The report, filed Thursday, questions the competency of department leaders. Systemic changes and court-ordered relief can change the Department of Correction’s “significant deficiencies.”
The federal monitor cited staggering statistics from the past 10 months: more than 700 reported “uses of force” by staff and more than 50 slashing or stabbings, along with other security and operational failures.
The report has also confirmed five inmate deaths of suicide in 2021. More than the previous five years combined, which lists a total of 12 in-custody deaths in 2021 and 51 in the last six years.
Correctional facilities have faced criticism for years, much like the maligned Rikers Island. In recent weeks, the safety of inmates and staffers alike has shifted into the spotlight, with public servants, union officials, with activists calling for a change in this key issue in NYC politics.
The situation was even referred to as a “humanitarian crisis.”
The federal monitoring reports several planned changes for the security of city jails. including the launch of an interim security plan to address self-harm and suicide. Other identified adjustments include changes to intake tracking, video monitoring, and post-incident management.
According to Officials, with expanded criteria’s in departments leadership roles and security personnel.
In response to the report, the Legal Aid Society released the following statement, highlighting the issues addressed here:
“The latest reports from the Monitor and the City continue to make clear the deep-seated ineptitude within the New York City Department of Correction (DOC) in protecting the people in its charge. The high level of use of force, dangerous incidents, and ongoing collapse in basic jail functions, are as gravely alarming as ever. Combined with the woefully insufficient measures the City has recently adopted, they show that the City is simply unwilling or unable to make the systemic changes to hold the staff and leadership accountable for humane and constitutional treatment of our clients.”
