"Within hours of the Board of Correction releasing a report on Nicholas Feliciano and the city’s failure to prevent attempts of suicide and self-harm in jails, that report was confirmed and reinforced as Anthony Scott lost his life following his own suicide attempt. His is the fourteenth life lost within the city’s jail system this year, and it again makes clear that the Department of Correction is proving unable to fill the basic mandate of protecting people in its custody, especially people at-risk of or experiencing mental health crisis. Everyone agrees that our jail cannot be used as mental health treatment centers, and yet it persists.
"The Board’s report shows clear inadequacies in Nicholas Feliciano’s case that are not situational but systemic. Anthony Scott’s death also makes clear that the problems with the city’s jails extend beyond the shores of Rikers Island. The recommendations in the report are positive, but as I pray for the family of Anthony Scott, for Nicholas Feliciano and his family, it is clear that we need transformational change to truly address the tragedies of a too-often unjust and inhumane system."
No comments:
Post a Comment