Mayor and DA Clark at odds in Polanco death
De Blasio and Clark argue over responsibility in death of Layleen Polanco
BY JASON COHEN
In 2019, Layleen Polanco, a transgender
woman, died in solitary confi
nement at Rikers Island. However,
District Attorney Darcel Clark and
Mayor Bill de Blasio are at odds over
who is at fault.
While Clark found no guards were
responsible for the death, the mayor
felt differently about the situation. On
Friday, he announced that 17 members
of the Corrections Department
will face departmental charges for Polanco’s
death.
“The death of Layleen Polanco was
an incredibly painful moment for our
city,” de Blasio said. “What happened
to Layleen was absolutely unacceptable
and it is critical that there is accountability.”
A year ago, 27-year-old Polanco
was in jail for 20 days for sex work
and drug possession. While in jail, Polanco
got into a fi ght and was placed in
solitary confi nement, where she was
later found dead in her cell.
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio
Cortez has been leading the charge
against solitary confi nement and justice
for Polanco. On Friday, she called
for the dismissal of the corrections offi
cers involved in the death of Polanco
and reiterated her demand for an end
Mayor overrules Clark in solitary confi nement death at Rikers File photo
to solitary confi nement and cash bail.
“The treatment of Layleen Polanco
inside Rikers is a moral travesty and,
as the Board of Corrections report has
now confi rmed, in direct violation
of corrections policy,” AOC said in a
statement. ” The corrections offi cers
involved must be fi red, and we must
end solitary confi nement and divest
from prisons.”
This statement follows the release
of a Board of Corrections’ report on
Polanco’s death, which found that she
was placed in solitary against a physician’s
advice and the city’s transgender
corrections housing policy contributed
to the decision to place her in
solitary confi nement. A recently released
video also shows guards laughing
outside Polanco’s cell shortly
before her death and indicates that
offi cers tried to wake her for approximately
an hour and a half before calling
for help.
After a six-month investigation,
DA Clark found no criminality was involved
in her death. On June 5, she announced
her offi ce’s fi ndings.
“A 27-year-old woman died in custody
in a city jail, and the circumstances
of her death warranted a
full and thorough investigation,”
Clark said. “Layleen Polanco died
from an epileptic seizure. Her family
and friends along with the public deserved
to know whether anything else
played a role in her death. It is an absolute
tragedy that Ms. Polanco died
so young.”
On June 7, 2019, she was found unresponsive
inside of her cell by correction
offi cers and was later pronounced
dead. An autopsy report issued by the
Offi ce of the Chief Medical Examiner
on Aug. 2, 2019 concluded that Polanco’s
death was natural and the cause
was “sudden unexpected death in epilepsy.”
“After an in-depth investigation by
my Public Integrity Bureau, we have
concluded that we would be unable to
prove beyond a reasonable doubt that
any individual committed any crime
associated with Ms. Polanco’s demise,”
Clark continued. “We will not
be seeking any criminal charges related
to this devastating event.”
Over the course of six months the
Public Integrity Bureau investigated
not only the events of June 7, 2019, but
the events leading up to that date.
The offi ce issued subpoenas to numerous
hospitals and health care providers,
receiving more than a thousand
pages of medical records. New
York City Department of Correction
records and Westchester County Department
of Correction records were
collected and analyzed. The offi ce
also interviewed correction offi cers
and incarcerated people, both present
and not present on June 7, 2019, as
well as medical staff who responded
on June 7, 2019.
SIRECI
Family Dental
Your Neighborhood Dentist Since 1983
GENERAL DENTISTRY
SPECIALTY CARE
����������������������������������������������������������������������������������
����������������������������������������������������������������������������������
������������������������������������������ ��
�� ����������������������������
������������������������������������������������
��������������������������������������������������������
����������������
��������������������������������
��������������������������������������������
����������������������������������������������������
��������������������
����������������������������������������������
FREE
CONSULTATIONS
COME VISIT US
IN OUR NEW
MODERN OFFICE
C A R I N G A F F O R D A B L E P A I N L E S S
2861 BRUCKNER BLVD. | 718-829-0455
BRONX TIMES R 22 EPORTER, JULY 3-9, 2020 BTR