Rikers Island

For the song by Kool G Rap & DJ Polo, see Rikers Island (song).

Rikers Island
The island and jail complex, 2004
Map showing the location of Rikers Island
Map showing the location of Rikers Island
LocationThe Bronx, New York City
Nearest cityNew York City
Coordinates40°47′28″N 73°52′58″W / 40.79111°N 73.88278°W / 40.79111; -73.88278
Area413 acres (167 ha)
Established1932
Governing bodyNew York City Department of Correction

Rikers Island is a 413-acre (167.14-hectare)[1][2] prison island in the East River in the Bronx[3] that contains New York City's largest jail.[4][5]

Named after Abraham Rycken, who took possession of the island in 1664, the island was originally under 100 acres (40 ha) in size, but has since grown to more than 400 acres (160 ha). The first stages of expansion were accomplished largely by convict labor hauling in ashes for landfill. The island is politically part of the Bronx, with a bridge being the only access available from Queens. It is part of Queens Community Board 1 and uses an East Elmhurst, Queens, ZIP Code of 11370 for mail.[3]

The island is the site of one of the world's largest correctional institutions and mental institutions,[6] and has been described as New York's best-known jail.[7] The complex, operated by the New York City Department of Correction, in 2015 had a budget of $860 million a year, a staff of 9,000 civilian officers and 1,500 other civilians managing 100,000 admissions per year and an average daily population of 10,000 inmates.[8] The majority (85%) of detainees are pretrial defendants, either held on bail or remanded in custody. The rest of the population have been convicted and are serving short sentences.[9] In a 2021 analysis by the New York City Comptroller, it costs the city approximately $556,539 to detain one person for one year at Rikers Island.[10]

Rikers Island has had a reputation for violence, physical and mental abuse and neglect of its inmates, and has attracted press and judicial scrutiny that has resulted in numerous rulings against the New York City government. There have been numerous assaults by inmates on uniformed officers and other civilian staff, often resulting in serious injuries. In May 2013, Rikers Island ranked as one of the ten worst correctional facilities in the entire United States, based on reporting in Mother Jones magazine.[11] A documented increase in violence on Rikers Island was reported by the 2010s. In 2015, there were 9,424 assaults, the highest number in five years.[12] In October 2019, the New York City Council voted to close down the facility by 2026.[13]

  1. ^ "New York's infamous Rikers Island jail is to close". BBC News. October 18, 2019. Archived from the original on January 18, 2023. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
  2. ^ Medina, Daniel A (December 9, 2019). "Rikers 2.0: inside the battle to build four new jails in New York City". the Guardian. Archived from the original on January 18, 2023. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
  3. ^ a b New York City Department of City Planning. "Tax Block & Tax Lot Base Map Files on CD-ROM" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 5, 2014. Retrieved July 26, 2007. Similar to the Marble Hill situation is that of Rikers Island. Rikers Island is part of the Borough of The Bronx. However, it is administratively included in Queens Community District 1.
  4. ^ "Dr. Emily Senay, M.D., M.P.H." CBS News. 2007. Archived from the original on June 29, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2007. In addition to making house calls for homebound patients in Manhattan through Betances Health Unit, Dr. Senay has worked in a variety of clinical settings including Rikers Island, New York City's largest jail...
  5. ^ Schapiro, Rich (March 18, 2017). "Potential closure of Rikers Island is opportunity for developers". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on March 22, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
  6. ^ "Rikers Island Food Waste Composting Facility". NYC Recycles. Archived from the original on August 19, 2014. Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  7. ^ Staff (April 12, 2017). "The end for New York's most famous jail". The Economist. Archived from the original on April 13, 2017. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  8. ^ Goldensohn, Rosa (June 18, 2015). "Rikers Population Falls Below 10,000 For First Time in Decades". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  9. ^ Staff (December 16, 2014). "What is Rikers Island?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 4, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  10. ^ "Cost of Incarceration per Person in New York City Skyrockets to All-Time High". comptroller.nyc.gov. December 6, 2021. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  11. ^ Ridgeway, James; Casellaurl, Jean (May 14, 2013). "America's 10 Worst Prisons: Rikers Island". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on August 2, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  12. ^ "Inside Rikers Island: A look at violence and corruption in the complex". February 9, 2016. Archived from the original on March 18, 2017. Retrieved April 1, 2017.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYCC20191017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).