Federal court holds NYC in contempt for use of force in NYC jails

November 27, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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CITYWIDE — A FEDERAL JUDGE on Wednesday found NYC in contempt over rampant abuse and the use of force in city jails, AP reports. Judge Laura Taylor Swain in Manhattan issued a ruling stemming from litigation filed in 2012 by the Legal Aid Society and others (Nunez v. City of New York) charging the city’s Department of Correction with a pattern of excessive and unnecessary force at Rikers. Despite the appointment of a federal monitor, conditions have only worsened in the nine years since the city settled the previous accusations, according to Legal Aid. Swain ordered all parties to work out remedies over the next several weeks.

“This is a historic decision. The culture of brutality on Rikers Island has resisted judicial and political reform efforts for years,” Legal Aid said in a statement following the decision. Legal Aid believes the ruling will create “a pathway for reform” which could include receivership.

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