Criminal Justice

Criminal Justice

HALT law suspension continues under prison strike agreement

The agreement calls for the head of the state prison agency to continue waiving certain elements of the law, which limits the use of solitary confinement, for at least another 90 days.

Opinion

Opinion: The murder of Robert Brooks as a catalyst for clemency

With abuse rampant in state prisons, why won’t the governor release grant clemency to people who are clearly rehabilitated?

News & Politics

Advocacy groups say state prison agency can’t halt law limiting solitary confinement

The commissioner of the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision released a memo last week announcing that certain provisions of the HALT Solitary Confinement law would be suspended.

New York State

Wildcat prison strikes continue upstate

Gov. Kathy Hochul and the head of the state corrections department are trying to use a combination of carrots and sticks to get corrections officers back to work.

News & Politics

Trump administration sues NY over ‘Green Light’ law

The 2019 law lets undocumented immigrants get driver’s licenses and prevents federal immigration authorities from accessing DMV data without a warrant.

Albany Agenda

Criminal justice groups, public defenders start campaign to defend discovery law

As Gov. Kathy Hochul and district attorneys push to weaken the 2019 law, advocates have launched a new website highlighting the law’s benefits.

Opinion

Opinion: Beg your pardon?

In the bizarro political world of Trump 2.0, New York City had its most surreal 24 hours yesterday as rumors swirled around the fate of Mayor Eric Adams.

Rikers Island

Updated

A timeline on the closure of Rikers Island

The long-awaited decision on a federal takeover will have to wait till an unknown date.

Policy

Albany considers multiple approaches to discovery reform

State Sen. Zellnor Myrie and Assembly Member Micah Lasher introduced a bill to help prosecutors comply with the law, while Gov. Kathy Hochul wants to weaken the law’s requirements.

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NYPD

Cops will start patrolling overnight subways on Monday

Gov. Kathy Hochul said that the state will foot $77 million in NYPD overtime costs over the next three months.

Opinion

Opinion: The Rikers federal monitor’s failures and the flawed Nunez consent decree

In contrast to previous consent decrees that were more narrowly tailored and helped reform Rikers Island jails, the Nunez Consent Decree tries to address systemic issues without a clear roadmap.

Opinion

Opinion: A Rikers receiver must have the power to close it

Closing Rikers will provide a natural endpoint for the receivership and an opportunity for the city to take back control of its jails.

Opinion

Opinion: Despite undeniable obstacles, Rikers Island can still be closed

Public officials have it within their power to take necessary steps toward permanently closing the atrocious jails on Rikers.

Criminal Justice

Hundreds of deaths in state prisons go unexplained

A City & State investigation found a lack of reporting on people who have died while in custody, as well as for those who were compassionately released, going back decades.

Albany Agenda

Paulin’s ‘Weinstein’ bill back on legislative agenda for 2025

The controversial bill, which failed to pass last year, would allow prosecutors to introduce evidence of prior sexual offenses in legal proceedings.