NYC correction officers union argues federal court takeover of Rikers would leave violence-plagued prison in ‘chaos’

Rich Calder
·2 min read
composite image left, rikers island sign; upper right guard walks down hallway at rikers lower right, rikers island jail complex as seen from the air
The Correction Officers' Benevolent Association asked a federal judge earlier this month to side with Mayor Eric Adams and the Department of Correction's motion to block the Rikers Island jail complex from being put under the authority of an outside "receiver."

The city’s correction officers union is backing Mayor Eric Adams’ bid to block a federal court takeover of Rikers Island, insisting the violence-plagued jail would only get more dangerous.

Correction Commissioner Lynelle Maginley-Liddie has proven she’s committed to “achieving” court-ordered reforms at Rikers since her December appointment by Adams, the Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association argued in legal papers filed April 2.

The Department of Correction would be left in a “state of suspended animation” if Rikers were placed under the control of a court-appointed “receiver,” the union argued, calling the move “regressive.”

The rare judicial designation of last resort, which was requested by Manhattan US Attorney Damian Williams and the Legal Aid Society, would give sweeping powers to an independent authority.

Manhattan US Attorney Damien Williams and the Legal Aid Society claim receivership is needed at Rikers Island because the city has failed to make needed changes to reduce cases of excessive force by correction officers on detainees. Corbis via Getty Images
Manhattan US Attorney Damien Williams and the Legal Aid Society claim receivership is needed at Rikers Island because the city has failed to make needed changes to reduce cases of excessive force by correction officers on detainees. Corbis via Getty Images

“It will lead to chaos,” the union insisted. “It will be the tipping point that erases all recent hard-earned progress, permanently exacerbates the staffing crisis, and destroys morale.”

The union contended Riker’s 5,600-inmate population is “more violent” – in part because there’s more seriously mentally ill people in custody — than it was when the city signed off on a landmark 2015 settlement plan. 

The correction-officer workforce dropped 35% since 2020 to 5,700 because of a “hiring freeze,” added the union. It praised Maginley-Liddie with “sparing no expense” to recruit new officers since taking over.

Under the settlement agreement, which is being overseen by a court-appointed monitor, the city committed to far-reaching reforms to resolve decades of claims of correction officers using excessive force.

However, Williams in November asked Manhattan federal Judge Laura Taylor Swain to turn control of Rikers over to an independent authority because DOC under then-Commissioner Louis Molina had been “unable or unwilling” to make policy changes to reduce violence.

The correction officer workforce has dropped by 35% since 2020 due to hiring freezes. Gregory P. Mango
The correction officer workforce has dropped by 35% since 2020 due to hiring freezes. Gregory P. Mango

Swain could rule on the receivership motion as early as July.