NYC PUBLIC ADVOCATE RESPONDS TO COURT ORDERING RIKERS BEING PUT UNDER CONTROL OF ‘REMEDIATION MANAGER’

 

"The conditions at Rikers have grown more dire and deadly for years. While the issues pre-date the current mayor, he has shown seemingly no ability, interest, or meaningful plan for addressing the crisis that threatens both detainees and staff there while nearly 40 people have lost their lives. As I highlighted in my inspection last week, he has steadfastly ignored laws meant to improve conditions, refused to move toward legally mandated closure, and invited ICE onto the island. Now, it will be out of his control and under outside management. 

 

"The clearest truth on Rikers is that what we have been doing has not worked. The amount of detainees has swelled and recruitment of staff has stalled in recognition of a crisis on both sides of the bars. It is past time to do something different. 

 

"This is a critical moment, but a cautious one. Outside management will only be successful if it is informed by people with real experience within the system and in oversight of it. The goals must simultaneously be to reverse the decades of unnecessary harm and suffering on Rikers Island and to move toward finally closing this monument to pain and failure. I would also be remiss if I did not express concern about any influence by a federal government whose biggest focus seems to be increasing criminalization, incarceration, and detention. I look forward to the appointment of this official and toward working with them to improve our city’s public safety and pursuit of justice." 

NYC Comptroller Brad Lander Commends Judge Swain’s Ruling on Rikers Federal Remediation Manager

 

Comptroller Lander was the first citywide elected to call for receivership in 2022

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander released the following statement: 

“Appointing an independent remediation manager is a serious indictment of the decades of mismanagement at Rikers. Today, Judge Laura Swain made the necessary decision to appoint a manager with their own substantial discretion to turn around the deplorable conditions for those detained and those who work at Rikers. 

“Rikers has become synonymous with human rights abuse. Over a hundred people detained have died awaiting trial in the last decade—at points in its history, being sent to Rikers was roulette of a death sentence without regard for basic constitutional rights to a trial.  

“Appointing a federal receiver or remediation manager will not magically fix all of the jail complex’s problems, and I still believe closing Rikers and replacing it with the borough-based jails is the right step. But the current system is too mired in its own mayhem to be fixed by any one Mayor or administration, so a receiver outside of Rikers’ intractable legal and regulatory barriers has the best chance to achieve basic safety and security for incarcerated people and staff.” 

JIM WALDEN STATEMENT ON LATEST CUOMO CORRUPTION SCANDAL

 

Independent Mayoral candidate Jim Walden released the following statement Tuesday on the news that disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo was penalized $622,056 Monday for breaking campaign finance rules by improperly coordinating with a super PAC. 

 

"Now we can add illegal coordination with a PAC and the incompetence of using AI to draft his policy proposals to disgraced Cuomo's corruption resume. And that's just the last two weeks. New Yorkers are not suckers and we don't want what Cuomo the snake oil salesman is selling. I am running for Mayor of New York City to put an end to exactly this kind of corruption that is produced year after year by the broken party system. When I am elected Mayor, I will bring independence and integrity to City Hall." 

 

Jim Walden, a former mob-busting federal prosecutor has raised almost $3 million (including public matching funds). He secured an endorsement from the city's largest labor organization (with 200,000+ voters). He also secured the first NYPD endorsement, as well as endorsements from almost 60 high-ranking prosecutors across the city. 

About Jim Walden 

Jim Walden learned early that success comes through resilience and hard work while growing up in working-class Levittown, Pennsylvania. Despite an abusive father who abandoned the family when Jim was 14, he graduated near the top of his class while distinguishing himself in debate. His two years in the U.S. Navy’s Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps earned him dozens of commendations, foreshadowing a lifetime of public service. 

 

It wasn’t easy for Jim to get to college. He spent a year working multiple jobs—from drugstore clerk to fast-food worker—sleeping on a friend’s floor while saving for his education until a friend helped him find a college where he’d earn financial aid. At Hamilton College, he excelled academically, winning awards for public speaking and campus service, and played rugby. He went to Temple University law school on an academic scholarship and graduated first in his class. He secured a coveted clerkship with a federal appellate judge in Philadelphia, Anthony Joseph Scirica. 

 

As a criminal prosecutor for the U.S. Department of Justice, Jim quickly earned a reputation for innovative strategies that made him the go-to prosecutor for FBI and DEA agents, as well as NYPD officers. Focusing on organized crime, his investigations led to more than 100 convictions—including members of all five New York crime families and one of the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives. He helped to solve 25 cold-case homicides. His groundbreaking work was featured in National Geographic’s “Inside the American Mob.” 

 

Jim built one of New York City’s premier litigation boutiques over a decade, while maintaining an unwavering commitment to public service law. Across his 20+ year career in private practice, his “good government” work has touched many corners of city life: 

• Fought for safer schools by forcing the Department of Education to protect bullied schoolkids 

 

• Secured $250 million for emergency repairs and better living conditions for over 400,000 NYCHA residents 

 

• Protected public spaces by stopping illegal parkland transfers in Manhattan and Brooklyn 

 

• Defended voting rights by successfully challenging gerrymandered district maps 

 

• Restored vital food assistance to impoverished New Yorkers 

 

• Protected hundreds of thousands of city retirees from healthcare cuts 

 

• Saved emergency care in Southern Brooklyn when SUNY wanted to close a critical hospital 

 

MAYOR ADAMS CREATES NEW MAYOR’S OFFICE TO COMBAT ANTISEMITISM

 

To Address Unprecedented Rise in Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, Mayor Adams Establishes New Office to Fight Antisemitism and Ensure Jewish New Yorkers Feel Safe

Builds on Adams Administration’s Work to Support Jewish New Yorkers, Combat Hate and Discrimination in All Forms

New York City Mayor Eric Adams today established the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, a mayoral office dedicated to fighting antisemitism in all forms and keeping New Yorkers safe. Amidst an unprecedented rise in antisemitism in New York City and across the entire country, Mayor Adams’ new office will be the first office of its kind established in a major city across the nation. Last year, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) reported that 54 percent of all hate crimes in New York City were against Jewish New Yorkers; during the first quarter of 2025, that number rose to 62 percent, demonstrating the urgent need for this office.

This new mayoral office will immediately establish an inter-agency taskforce dedicated to fighting antisemitism in all its forms, including by monitoring court cases and outcomes at all levels of the justice system, liaising with the New York City Law Department on appropriate cases to bring or join, advising on executive orders to issue and legislation to propose to address antisemitism, and working across agencies to ensure New Yorkers feel protected against antisemitism and address incidents of antisemitism. The office will work to ensure city-funded entities and city agencies do not permit different forms of antisemitism. Finally, to lead the office, Mayor Adams appointed Moshe Davis as the first executive director of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism. As its first action, Executive Director Davis will form a commission of Jewish leaders from across New York City to oversee and advise on the office’s work.

“Since day one, our administration made a commitment to all New Yorkers to keep them safe and protect against hate in all forms. As we continue to see the rising tide of antisemitism here at home, and across the country, this moment calls for decisive action,” said Mayor Adams. “The Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism will be the first of its kind in a major city across the nation, and will tackle antisemitism in all of its forms, working across city agencies to ensure Jewish New Yorkers are protected and can thrive here in the five boroughs. Antisemitism is an attack not only on Jewish New Yorkers, but on the very idea of New York City as a place where people from all backgrounds can live together. Moshe Davis is a tireless advocate on behalf of Jewish New Yorkers, and he is exactly the right person to lead and build this office. I’m grateful to Moshe for stepping up to lead on this important issue.”

“The rise in antisemitism in our city, in our country, and around the world is both alarming and intolerable,” said First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro. “Today, Mayor Adams is taking a stand — that in the city with the largest Jewish population in the world — antisemitism is unacceptable and we have to do more to address it. So, New York City will lead the way as the first major city in America to establish an office dedicated solely to combatting antisemitism.”

"I am proud of the creation of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, a necessary step to address the concerning rise in antisemitism across our city,” said Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit (CAU) Commissioner Fred Kreizman. “Moshe Davis, our dedicated Jewish Liaison at CAU, is the perfect choice to lead this effort. His passionate advocacy, deep understanding of community needs, and proven ability to coordinate across agencies make him an exceptional leader for this important initiative. I look forward to working with Moshe as we strengthen our commitment to combating antisemitism and promoting unity in our city."

"Combating antisemitism requires a sledgehammer approach: coordinated, unapologetic, and immediate.” said Executive Director Moshe Davis. "Mayor Adams has been a modern-day Maccabee, standing up for the Jewish community, and, with the establishment of this office, he is strengthening his resolve to ensure Jewish New Yorkers thrive in our city. I look forward to working closely with Mayor Eric Adams and First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro to continue our forceful response against anti-Jewish hate and discrimination."

As the Anti-Defamation League recently reported a record number of antisemitic incidents in 2024 across the country, including the highest number in New York state, Mayor Adams is taking action to protect Jewish New Yorkers. The creation of this office builds on the Adams administration’s work to combat antisemitism, including by directing the NYPD to take action against hate crimes and violence that threaten New Yorkers; establishing the city’s first “Breaking Bread, Building Bonds” initiative to broaden connections amongst communities of every faith, class, and creed; and establishing the city’s first Jewish Advisory Council to ensure Jewish communities across New York City are connected with all of the city’s resources and services available.

About Moshe Davis

Moshe Davis joined the Adams administration in November 2022 as Jewish liaison in the Mayor's Office of Community Affairs. In this capacity, he connected the city's nearly 1 million Jewish residents to municipal government while communicating administration priorities and managing Mayor Adams’ first-of-its-kind Jewish Advisory Council.

Prior to joining the Mayor's Office, Davis served as a rabbinic leader at the Manhattan Jewish Experience, where he created faith-based programs for young professionals on the Upper West Side. Davis also founded “New York Jews in Politics,” a growing network of Jewish professionals working across government, advocacy, and nonprofit sectors.

Davis holds a bachelor's degree in Liberal Arts from Ana G. Mendez University, as well as an ordination from The Rabbinical Council of Jerusalem.

Executive Director Davis will report directly to First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro.

"I applaud the Mayor's Office for the creation of the Office to Combat Antisemitism. In times where tensions are heightened and the majority of hate crimes in NYC target Jewish New Yorkers, it is more important than ever to put our resources towards addressing the rise of antisemitism and anti-Jewish hate,” said New York State Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz. “In addition to efforts being made by the city, the state has just included my masked harassment legislation into the 2025-26 budget. Our communities will now be safer as individuals feel less emboldened to commit hate crimes while hiding their identity behind face coverings. Our Jewish friends, neighbors, and all New Yorkers deserve to feel safe and secure, fortunately New York is taking steps in the right direction to work towards this goal."

“We are united in our effort to stamp out antisemitism. The new Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism will stem the rising tide of hate against Jewish New Yorkers, who are now tragically the target of the majority of hate crimes in our city,” said New York State Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar. “This office, under the leadership of Executive Director Moshe Davis, will be laser-focused on stopping the scourge of antisemitism through an all-hands-on deck approach. I am proud of my work across the city to combat antisemitism and my legislative wins to foster inclusion for every culture. I look forward to partnering with this new and important office to stand up to hate and bring love and respect for our Jewish American family, living up to the true meaning of our city.”