Most would say about time...but the rot is deep on Riker's---I have my doubts that any real systemic change will occur.
I wish them luck:
abcnews.go.com
A federal judge on Tuesday seized control of New York City's notorious jail complex on Rikers Island, which will now be run by an official who reports directly to the court.
In a 77-page ruling, Judge Laura Taylor Swain wrote that she found the conduct of the city over the last nine years "leaves no doubt that continued insistence on compliance with the court's orders by persons answerable principally to political authorities would lead only to confrontation and delay."
She also wrote "that the current management structure and staffing are insufficient to turn the tide within a reasonable period; that defendants have consistently fallen short of the requisite compliance with court orders for years, at times under circumstances that suggest bad faith; and that enormous resources -- that the city devotes to a system that is at the same time overstaffed and underserved -- are not being deployed effectively."
The manager, who will report to the judge, will work with the city's jails commissioner and will be "empowered to take all actions necessary" to fix the complex.
"While the necessary changes will take some time, the court expects to see continual progress toward these goals," the judge wrote.
Critics have described brutal, violent and inhumane conditions inside the jail for years.
I wish them luck:
Judge seizes control of New York City’s Rikers Island jail complex
Federal Judge Laura Taylor Swain took control of New York City’s Rikers Island jail complex on Tuesday and appointed an official who reports to the court to run it.
abcnews.go.com
A federal judge on Tuesday seized control of New York City's notorious jail complex on Rikers Island, which will now be run by an official who reports directly to the court.
In a 77-page ruling, Judge Laura Taylor Swain wrote that she found the conduct of the city over the last nine years "leaves no doubt that continued insistence on compliance with the court's orders by persons answerable principally to political authorities would lead only to confrontation and delay."
She also wrote "that the current management structure and staffing are insufficient to turn the tide within a reasonable period; that defendants have consistently fallen short of the requisite compliance with court orders for years, at times under circumstances that suggest bad faith; and that enormous resources -- that the city devotes to a system that is at the same time overstaffed and underserved -- are not being deployed effectively."
The manager, who will report to the judge, will work with the city's jails commissioner and will be "empowered to take all actions necessary" to fix the complex.
"While the necessary changes will take some time, the court expects to see continual progress toward these goals," the judge wrote.
Critics have described brutal, violent and inhumane conditions inside the jail for years.
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