DASHBOARD UPDATE: NYC Comptroller Releases New Monthly Data on Department of Correction Operations

 

Ahead of Nunez status conference, Lander sends letter in support of receivership over Rikers

Ahead of the status conference on Thursday in the Nunez v. City of New York matter, the New York City Comptroller’s Office released a monthly update to its Department of Correction (DOC) Dashboard, available here. The dashboard monitors pervasive issues in the City’s jails, including staff absenteeism, missed medical appointments, and incidents of violence among detained people and staff. It also tracks the jail population every month, which rose to 5,940 people in custody. The detained population remains well above the capacity of the borough-based jails intended to replace the notorious complex. 

The DOC data for October shows little progress on the key metrics available for the dashboard: 

• At the start of November, the jail population was 5,940, 1% uptick from the prior month. 
• Average daily uniformed staff headcount continues to decline, with DOC employing under 7,000 officers for the second month compared to just under 10,000 prior to the pandemic’s outset. 
• Uniformed sick leave held steady with 12% of officers on sick leave for the fourth consecutive month, and a one percentage point decline in the number of medically restricted staff. 
• Use of force within the city’s jails remains high at over 34 incidents per 100 persons in custody for the last quarter, 80% higher than the pre-pandemic average. 
• Assaults on staff and stabbing incidents increased from the prior month; stabbings are 4.5 times more frequent than the 2019 average. 
• Individuals with serious mental illness still comprise 18% of the overall population, increasing to 1,063 persons this month. 

The Comptroller’s office has closely tracked pervasive issues in the City’s jail system dating back to 2014, and in August 2022, Comptroller Lander produced the Department of Correction dashboard to provide detailed, timely metrics for the press and public to assess progress on addressing ongoing management issues at DOC. Comptroller Lander was the first citywide elected official to call for a federal receiver to oversee reforms at the jail complex, citing rising violence, deaths in custody, and lack of progress on key reforms.  

Ahead of the status conference, Comptroller Lander sent a letter to Judge Laura Swain outlining the alarming number of deaths, consistent staffing mismanagement, and overwhelming number of violent incidents. The letter notes that the Comptroller’s office settled and adjusted over $28 million in Rikers-related claims in FY 2021, a snapshot of the fiscal risks to the City posed by mismanagement of the jail system. The Comptroller urged the appointment of a federal receiver empowered to make structural and management changes in the jails. 

In the letter, Comptroller Lander expresses “serious concerns with the lack of progress made by the Department of Correction (DOC) to comply with the Nunez consent judgment to address the violence afflicting New York City jails and create a functional system that keeps both those in custody and the staff charged with their care safe. […] DOC has not demonstrated the ability to end the violence on Rikers Island, which the data shows continuing at an alarming rate.”  

Read the letter in full here.