Report: Inmates Have ‘Seized Near Total Control Over’ NYC’s Rikers Island JailJohn Binder 11 Oct 2021
Inmates have “seized near total control over entire units” at New York City’s infamous Rikers Island jail, a report details. Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) has long claimed he will shutter the jail and build prisons in New York City neighborhoods to house inmates.
A New York Times report on Monday reveals the extent to which the city’s most violent inmates awaiting trial at Rikers Island are allowed to wander freely, run food distribution, and commit more crimes.
“Detainees in some buildings have seized near total control over entire units, deciding who can enter and leave them, records and interviews show,” the Times reports:
In other buildings, they have wandered in and out of staff break rooms and similarly restricted areas, with some flouting rules against smoking tobacco and marijuana. Sometimes they have answered phones that were supposed to be manned by guards. Several have stolen keys and used them to free others in custody, who went on to commit slashings and other acts of violence.
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To guards, detainees and their lawyers, the most striking aspect of the current dysfunction at Rikers Island is the extent to which incarcerated people seem to run parts of the complex.
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On five occasions in the past 18 months, incarcerated people who should have been confined or closely supervised were instead free to commit violent acts.
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https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2021/10/11/report-inmates-have-seized-near-total-control-over-nycs-rikers-island-jail/
