OVEWRVIEW OF THE HELL THAT IS RIKER'S ISLAND

OVERVIEW OF THE HELL THAT IS RIKER'S ISLAND PRISON

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Introduction: Riker's Island is a 413 acre prison island, located

on the East River in the Bronx. It I, still, to date, New York's

biggest prison facility.

 Riker's is the world's largest correctional institution as well as

mental institution in the U.S. Opened by the NYC Department of

Corrections with a working budget of $860 million a year.

Currently, a staff of 9,000 civilian officers and another 1,500

civilians managing a daily population of around 10,000 inmates.

On average, it costs $556,559 dollars a year to cover the costs

of ONE prisoner.

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RIKER'S REPUTATION

   Riker's Island has a long standing reputation for violence.,

physical, mental abuse, neglect of inmates. Numerous assaults

have been documented of inmates on staff; resulting in serious

bodily injury. Ranked as one of the worst prison facilities in the

United States in terms of violence and poor conditions. In 2018,

there were 9,424 serious assaults on staff. In October of 2019,

NYC Counsel voted to close the prison COMPLETELY by 2026.

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RIKER'S COMPLEX FACILITIES

  The jail consists of 10 jailers, holding local offenders

awaiting trial, or serving sentences of one year or less.

The average daily population is around 10k prisoners, but has

a capacity to hold 15k prisoners.

  North Infirmary Command used as an infirmary, is used to house

inmates requiring extreme protective custody, health needs,

prisoners with mental illness; also those detoxing from drugs.

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NOTABLE EVENTS

  Riker's is extremely close to LaGuardia International airport.

On 2/1/52, a fight crashed into Rikers itself, killing 20,

injuring 78, 57 inmates helped the injured; 30 of whom,

afterward, had their sentences commuted entirely.

-in 1997 Blood Nation was founded

-during the AIDS epidemic in 1980's, typically, the prison

would grant full release to those inmates afflicted with AIDS.

It was an unknown liability that the prison did not want to 

take on. This was seen as a "compassionate" move at the time;

to allow AIDS patients to die at home vs. prison.

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RIKER'S INFAMY

  1. In earlier years Riker's came under public scrutiny for their

strip searches upon inmates and their frequency

 2. opened in 1932

 3. Riker's island is INFESTED with overpopulated RATS

 4. Inmates, even through the decade of the 2000's, were

used as enforcers. They were used by both STAFF and INMATES

 5. In 2008, Lloyd Nickelson was indicted after he allegedly

used a select group of teenage inmates as enforcers under a

regime called "the program." Inmates, were forced to do labor

jobs for others, for fellow prisoners, these inmates were also

beaten, relentlessly, if they failed to comply.

 5. Riker's has a LONG history of VIOLENT SEXUAL ASSAULTS.

In June 2008, an incident of rape was reported to the appropriate

authorities. The alleged victim claimed "someone entered her

cell while she was sleeping." The woman claimed to have been

both bound and gagged and a dildo was used to sexually

assault her. All this behavior was being conducted by the 

staff at the prison; meanwhile, they employed inmates to be

their "look out" when they were raping female prisoners.

6. Riker's Island, as it came to media attention, was, placing

minors in solitary confinement. The law has long upheld that

that children age 16 cannot be held in solitary confinement in

adult prisons for any duration of time. Additionally, the Supreme

Court has ruled that minors, specifically those ages 16-18, could

for short periods of time, with discretion, COULD be placed

in solitary depending on the high profile nature of their case,

or for their own safety, or depending on what behavior the jail

felt solitary confinement was the "proper" punishment for

a prisoner's behavior in jail. However, RIKERS REPEATEDLY

put whomever they wanted in solitary, even for small offenses.

Some youth spent years of their life, unconstitutionally held,

in the delegated conditions of solitary confinement. Most

infamously, the case of Khalil Browder.