Rikers isn’t perfect, but it’s what New York City needs
BROOKLYNPAPER.COM
COURIER L 30 IFE, SEPT. 13-19, 2019
OPINION
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LAST WEEK’S TOP STORY:
Unfortunately, the plan
to close Rikers Island
took two more significant
steps forward last week.
This effort is just another
chapter in the criminal justice
reform lunacy movement
that has taken over our
city and state.
In a nutshell, the goal is
to completely close Rikers
Island by 2026 and replace it
with four jails in Brooklyn,
Manhattan, Queens, and the
Bronx.
Last week, the City Planning
Commission voted to
approve the required zoning
changes for the proposed
new borough jails, which
was a necessity in order to
close Rikers. This was no
surprise as Mayor de Blasio,
who spearheaded this effort,
appoints the majority of the
Commission members. Two
days later the City Council
Subcommittee on Landmarks,
Public Siting and
Maritime Use held a public
hearing on the issue.
Here is the rub: the lynchpin
of the entire plan is that
the jail population in New
York City must be reduced
to below 5,000 because each
of the new borough facilities
will only have a capacity of
1,150. To put this number in
perspective, in the bad old
days of the early 1990’s the
daily population at Rikers
Island was over 20,000. In
the summer of 2017 when the
mayor first announced his
plan, it was over 9,000. Due
to City Hall criminal justice
reforms to force a decrease
in the jail population, as of
July it was about 7,400.
We should be confident
that this number will get to
the requisite amount below
5,000 because of the policies
of our current crop of
city and state legislators, as
well as District Attorneys.
In these times, does anyone
doubt that come hell or
high water we will get to
below 5,000 inmates even if
it means having prisoners
drawing straws to see who
gets released?
Not surprisingly, I have
not heard one proponent of
this plan ask a pretty logical
question: what if the
crime rate increases and the
prison population rises, and
we need more capacity? But
this is a silly question these
days considering more of
our progressive friends advocate
for no new jails to replace
Rikers because no one
should be sent to prison.
A major factor sure to reduce
the local jail population
is legislation passed by
Albany that takes effect in
January which eliminates
bail for nearly everyone.
Therefore, about 99 percent
of those arrested will be
back on the streets hours after
they are arrested.
Expressing the fears of
many common sense New
Yorkers, NYPD Commissioner
James O’Neill said
recently, “If your house gets
burglarized in 2020 and we
make an arrest, that person’s
going to be out the
same day… there is a core
group that varies from 600
to 800 people that are on Rikers
Island right now awaiting
a court proceeding —
next year they’re going to be
out and some of these people
have gun collars in the past.
They have significant violent
histories and that’s not
how we keep New York City
safe.”
We should not have to
wait for an innocent New
Yorker to be killed or raped
by someone a judge was
forced to release without
bail, and the ensuing news
headlines for our new Democratic
dominated state legislature
to realize the lunacy
of their legislation.
District Attorneys are
also doing their part to keep
those who commit crimes out
of jail and ensure we keep
the number below 5,000. For
example, Brooklyn District
Attorney Gonzalez admitted
that as part of his Justice
2020 reform plan “non-jail
resolutions will be sought at
every juncture of a case” except
“most often” in murder
and rape cases.
No one is saying that the
413-acre complex in the East
River is perfect, but if one
had to imagine the perfect
location for a jail, it would
include high fences, lots of
barb wire, swift currents,
and only one way on and off
a bridge. These are the precise
characteristics of Rikers
Island. Having prisoners
in the heart of local neighborhoods
would not be an
optimal choice.
The complex does need
to be improved and modernized,
but this can be achieved
with temporary facilities
and a phased redevelopment
plan. Most other problems
at Rikers are the result of
mismanagement and administration
policies, not the location.
In short, the drive to get
the jail population below
the magic number of 5,000
means early release for criminals,
little or no jail time for
crimes, and turning a blind
eye to others.
If there was any common
sense in the City Council
they would pass legislation
(Intro. 940) introduced by
Queens Councilman Robert
Holden to create a commission
to examine the cost of
renovating jail facilities on
Rikers Island. However, only
five others are currently on
board with this move.
Bob Capano has worked
for Brooklyn Republican and
Democrat elected officials.
Follow him on Twitter @bobcapano.
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Bob Capano
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