NYC PUBLIC ADVOCATE'S STATEMENT ON THE FIFTH DEATH IN CITY CUSTODY THIS YEAR

"Another New Yorker lost their life in city custody today, the fifth of the year and 33rd under this administration. This is the status quo on Rikers. The mayor was so desperate to preserve that he refused to enforce the law banning solitary and the use of prolonged isolation, declaring a state of emergency to block it. There has long been a crisis on Rikers, as today’s tragic loss shows, but the administration is relying on keeping that emergency in place, rather than acting to address it.”