20 THE QUEENS COURIER • SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Governor takes steps to address dire conditions on Rikers Island
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Aft er a public outcry from lawmakers
who visited Rikers Island and witnessed
“deplorable and deadly conditions” suffered
by those incarcerated in the complex,
Governor Kathy Hochul took action
Friday, Sept. 17, by signing the Less is
More Act.
Th e “decarceration bill” will end the
practice of sending people to jail as they
await hearings over alleged technical
parole violations, such as missed curfew
and marijuana use, which is expected to
release several hundred detainees from
city jails.
“I believe that what today is about is
protecting human life, the lives of the
people who are incarcerated as well as the
correction offi cers. It’s about protecting
human rights: the right to work in a safe
environment, the right to live and exist
in an environment that is clean, hygienic,
and above all safe,” Hochul said. “It’s also
about protecting human dignity, and this
questions who we are as a people when
we can allow situations as we’ve seen in
Rikers exist in a prosperous, mighty city
like New York. Th e fact that this exists is
an indictment on everyone.”
In addition to signing Less is More,
Hochul also announced an agreement
with the Department of Correction to
release nearly 200 incarcerated individuals
and another 200 people who have
been sentenced to at least 90 days will be
transferred from Rikers Island to state
facilities.
“She is acting to help us get a number of
people out of Rikers immediately. It looks
like initially, that could be several hundred
people which is tremendously helpful,”
Mayor Bill de Blasio said on his Sept.
17 radio appearance with Brian Lehrer.
“Th is governor has done a lot more to
help us just in a matter of days than any
help we got previously. Th is is going to
make a huge diff erence in really profoundly
improving the situation.”
Th e dire conditions on Rikers Island
were amplifi ed aft er a visit by more than a
dozen lawmakers including state Senator
Jessica Ramos and Assemblywoman
Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, who recounted
their harrowing ordeal of seeing one man
attempt suicide in front of them.
“Aft er an eye-opening and devastating
visit to Rikers Island this week, I’m grateful
Governor Hochul has signed the Less
Is More Act into law. It is also relieving to
know that over 190 people who are incarcerated
are being released immediately.
And this is still only one step of several
that my colleagues in government must
take to decarcerate,” González-Rojas said.
González-Rojas reiterated that she
believes de Blasio should use correction
law to release more people on the inside
and that district attorneys can and should
release people on pre-trial detention.
“Th is is a public health emergency. We
are not past it yet so we must continue to
act with urgency,” González-Rojas said.
Already this year, 10 individuals have
died in the jail complex that has been
experiencing dire staffi ng problems
throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
State Senator Julia Salazar noted New
York imprisons more people for noncriminal
“technical” violations of parole
than any other state in the country.
“Governor Hochul signing the Less
is More bill today means that thousands
of New Yorkers will be able to live
their lives without continuously falling
into the cycle of injustice that is our
parole system. Given the unprecedented
human rights crisis at the jails on Rikers
Island and at correctional facilities in
Photo by Kevin P. Coughlin
New York, we still have more work to
do,” Salazar said. “We must also take legislative
action to further transform the
parole system and to reverse the devastating
toll of mass incarceration on communities
across our state.”
Assemblyman David Weprin,
the chairman of the Committee of
Correction, explained how the Less is
More Act will help end the punitive
practice of re-incarcerating individuals
allowing them to reintegrate into their
communities.
“For far too long, people who are
on parole have lived in fear of a technical
isolation, like being late for curfew,
would send them back to prison,”
Weprin said. “We all know that life happens.
Anyone who lives in New York
is aware that subways and buses can
run late and cause a missed deadline.
A non-criminal technical parole violation
should not be a reason for families
to be separated from their loved ones. I
am proud to witness this much-needed
signing today. I thank the sponsors of
the bill, legislative leadership, the governor,
and the advocates for all of their
tireless work on this bill.”
“I believe that what today is about is
protecting human life, the lives of the people
who are incarcerated as well as the correction
offi cers. It’s about protecting human rights:
the right to work in a safe environment, the
right to live and exist in an environment that
is clean, hygienic, and above all safe.”
— Governor Kathy Hochul
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