Opinion | New York will close Rikers Island says Mayor…

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New York will close Rikers Island says Mayor Adams and Rikers Commission
chair Lippman

Theodore Parisienne for New York Daily News

A Department of Correction bus is pictured next to the Rikers Island sign in Queens on Sept. 13, 2021. (Theodore Parisienne for New York Daily News)

By Eric L. Adams and Jonathan Lippman

December 15, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

Teddy Roosevelt once said, “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” As the mayor of New York and
as New York State’s former chief judge and the chair of the reinstituted Independent Rikers
Commission we have come together with City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams to ensure the city
,

has a realistic and responsible plan to close the jail complex on Rikers Island in a way that protects the
rights, dignity, and safety of all justice-involved New Yorkers, as well as ensures the safety and security
of the people who work on Rikers and are part of our communities.

In 2019, the city enacted a law requiring Rikers to close by 2027 We are also in a different place after
.

the cascading crises wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic. During those difficult years, our justice
system came under great stress, and we still have much ground to make up.

With criminal cases in the city now taking far longer than the national average amount of time to
resolve — and many as long as two years to go to trial — the current jail population at Rikers is 13%
higher than at the outset of COVID in March 2020.

The projected post-Rikers system capacity of 4,500 for both borough-based jails and secure hospital
beds is significantly smaller than the current jail population of almost 6,200. Construction of the new
beds has been delayed and costs have substantially increased since initial estimates — all while our
city has faced rising costs from other unforeseen crises, including the needs of asylum seekers.

The Brooklyn facility contract was registered in 2023 for $2.95 billion — almost double the budgeted
$1.6 billion estimate from 2019 — with construction completion estimated to be in 2029. That is likely
indicative of the costs of the remaining three borough facilities. Their construction time frames are
also at risk, though we will explore all reasonable options to accelerate them and work to bring the
secure hospital beds online swiftly in the meantime.

The Independent Rikers Commission has also previously projected that closing Rikers could produce
operating savings, something it will further analyze in the days ahead.

Despite these setbacks, we remain committed to the important goal of closing Rikers. Now more than
ever, it is essential that our government, elected leaders, and dedicated advocates come together to
find practical solutions to achieve this end.

That is what the Independent Rikers Commission intends to do, with the full support of City Hall and
the Council. Since its establishment in 2016, the commission’s research, analysis, and policy
development have contributed to a robust dialogue and strong advances around effective approaches
to crime, public safety, and incarceration.

For this new phase, the commission has bolstered its roster of civic leaders, public safety experts, and
policymakers with new members and advisors representing the perspectives of crime victims,
corrections and law enforcement, faith communities, city businesses, nonprofit organizations and
community groups.

Together, we are in agreement about the broad strokes needed to change the system. We must reduce
the number of people held in the city’s jails without impacting public safety, and we must reduce the
amount of time it takes to go to trial. The waiting times for detained persons at Rikers to have their
day in court are far too long, inflating the jail population and keeping crime victims waiting for
accountability. That must change.

Thankfully, we believe the courts, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and the city can work together as
strong partners in these efforts.

We also agree that we must address the mental health crisis and the fact that more than half the
people at Rikers — 55% — have a mental illness. Changing how we treat those in need of help will have
a major impact on how we design and manage our jail system in the future.

We must realize these goals while balancing the budget and remaining careful stewards of the city’s
finite resources, amid the other critical expenses we are facing.

Finally, we firmly agree that we have the opportunity before us to do more than just close Rikers. This
is an opportunity to reimagine and modernize New York City’s jail and justice systems in a way that

delivers much-needed services and promotes rehabilitation, not recidivism.

Teddy Roosevelt also said that the credit in tackling great problems goes to the people “actually in the
arena,” who strive for the worthy cause, who are not timid in the face of challenges. We boldly stand
together with Speaker Adams in the arena and pledge to do all we can, where we are. Closing Rikers is
a worthy cause, but closing Rikers the right way is essential.

Adams is mayor of New York. Lippman, the former New York State chief judge, chairs the Independent Rikers
Commission.

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