In the News

2024 Media Highlights

11/20/2024 — The City: Rikers Island Shutdown Plan Progresses With Construction Firms for New Manhattan Jail

10/17/2024 — NY1: Study: 75% of crime victims support expanding alternatives to incarceration

9/21/2024 — amNY: Breaking cycles of violence at Rikers Island

9/11/2024 — The City: City Council Makes Push for Rikers Island Green Projects, as Mayor Adams Stalls on Plans

8/27/2024 — Queens Daily Eagle: The city has three years to close Rikers – can it be done?

8/15/2024 — El Diario: El cierre de Rikers: un camino hacia la justicia, la seguridad y la reconstrucción de nuestras comunidades

7/12/2024 — Daily News: Healing minds and bodies from Rikers

5/23/2024 — ENRNewYork: NYC Awards $7B for Replacement Jails With 2027 Deadline to Close Rikers Looming

5/23/2024 — City Limits: Will NYC Make it Easier to Find a Home After Jail? 

5/19/2024 — Daily News: As replacement costs for Rikers climbs, key NYC commission looking for answers

5/17/2024 — Queens Daily Eagle: ‘A little perplexed’: Questions raised over city’s $4 billion contract for construction of Queens jail

5/16/2024 — NY1: Bronx, Queens jail contracts show 2031 completion

5/8/2024 — Queens Daily Eagle: Four billion dollars and four years late: Queens jail is over budget and behind schedule

4/21/2024 — Queens Daily Eagle: Council calls on mayor to reverse Queens jail expansion

3/27/2024 — Daily News: NYC Mayor Adams names two people to 5-member jail release commission

3/13/2024 — Queens Daily Eagle: Mayor claims borough-based jails can’t be built by Rikers’ closure deadline

3/6/2024 — City & State: A timeline on the closure of Rikers Island

3/4/2024 — City & State: Rikers replacement jails won't be ready by 2027 deadline, City Hall budget director says

2/23/2024 — Gothamist: NYC increases number of detainees to be held at borough-based jails that will replace Rikers

2/13/2024 — The City: ‘Napkin Math’ Projecting 7,000 at Rikers Dodges City Hall’s Role in Jail Population, Say Advocates

2/10/2024 — NYN Media: Living a testament to humane, criminal justice reform efforts

1/29/2024 — Queens Daily Eagle: New leader of Fortune Society talks Rikers, receivership and criminal justice in NY

2023 Media Highlights

12/19/2023 — Queens Daily Eagle: City expands commission to close Rikers: Lippman Commission grows as mayor’s position on jail’s closure shifts

12/15/2023 — Daily News: New York will close Rikers Island says Mayor Adams and Rikers Commission chair Lippman

12/15/2023 — City and State: Exclusive: New Rikers commission unveils list of members

12/12/2023 — The City: Bill Banning Solitary Confinement at Rikers Nears City Council Vote, Sources Say

12/8/2023 — New York Times: New Jails Commissioner Aims to Avoid Federal Rikers Takeover

12/5/2023 — Queens Daily Eagle: Attorney general, NYCBA and public defenders call for Rikers receiver

12/4/2023 — City and State: A timeline on the closure of Rikers Island

11/7/2023 — Yes!: The Vision of a Renewable Rikers Island in NYC

11/1/2023 — Crain’s NY Business: Adams’ surprise promotion of jails chief deepens Rikers Island uncertainty

10/31/2023 — WNYC: A new NYC commission is charged with making sure Rikers is closed by 2027

10/31/2023 — Gothamist: Head of troubled NYC jails department will leave post for new job in City Hall

10/27/2023 — Brooklyn Daily Eagle: Rikers Commission 2.0: a new chapter in the fight to close the jail complex

10/26/2023 — NY1: Independent Rikers commission chair discusses future of the complex

10/26/2023 — Queens Chronicle: Council continues plans to close Rikers

10/23/2023 — Gothamist: A new NYC commission is charged with making sure Rikers is closed by 2027

10/23/2023 — Press Release: Independent Rikers Commission 2.0, Led by Former Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, Launches to Update and Enhance Roadmap to Close Rikers

10/21/2023 — Queens Daily Eagle: Commission to create new plan to close Rikers

10/20/2023 — amNY: New commission formed to update plan to close Rikers by 2027

10/19/2023 — New York Times: As Conditions Worsen at Rikers, New Commission Revives Push to Close It

10/18/2023 — Daily News: Hospital beds for ailing detainees at Bellevue delayed until end of 2024, plans for 2 other hospitals ‘paused’ indefinitely

10/17/2023 — Daily News: NYC jail reform panel proposes plan for 1,500 new beds for mentally ill detainees

10/12/2023 — Politico: NYC vowed to close one of the nation’s worst jails. It isn’t going very well.

10/4/2023 — Gothamist: Rikers detainees are isolated and idle after programming budget cuts, advocates tell NYC Council

9/21/2023 — Fordham Law News: Incarceration and Mental Health: How A Different Approach to Mental Health May Be Key to Closing Rikers

9/15/2023 — Brooklyn Daily Eagle: Judge Lippman: Closing Rikers is easy — address mental illness

9/5/2023 — News 12: Controversy surrounds plans for NYC's borough-based jails as Rikers closure deadline looms

7/16/2023 — Daily News: NYC panel empowered to free detainees sentenced to Rikers Island, city jails hasn’t met in Mayor Adams’ term

6/26/2023 — Crain’s NY Business: Gutting essential services will endanger lives further on Rikers

5/31/2023 — Queens Daily Eagle: Lawmakers question DOC’s ability to get detainees to court

5/31/2023 — Fox 5 New York: Report: NYC Dept. of Correction tried to cover up 5 incidents

4/17/2023 — Crain’s NY Business: Lawmakers weigh options as borough jails inch forward

4/11/2023 — Daily News: Public Advocate Jumaane Williams questions Mayor Adams’ support for closing Rikers

3/24/2024 — Queens Daily Eagle: New Yorkers sound off on lengthy and expensive Brooklyn borough-based jail proposal

3/21/2023 — NY1: Former DOC deputy commissioner talks future of Rikers Island

3/15/2023 — Daily News: NYC may house inmates at half-finished Brooklyn jail to comply with ‘flawed’ Rikers Island closing plan: Mayor Adams

3/15/2023 — Queens Daily Eagle: $3 billion and 2 years tardy: Proposed jail contract blows past Rikers closure deadline

3/13/2023 — Politico: Waiting to close Rikers

3/13/2023 — Daily News: Delay in Brooklyn jail construction casts doubt Mayor Adams will meet deadline to close Rikers

2/6/2023 — The City: Rikers Island Group Skips Meetings, Jeopardizing ‘Renewable Rikers’ Timetable

1/16/2023 — Gothamist: Rikers Island is supposed to close in 2027, so why is Mayor Adams talking about 'Plan B?'

1/3/2023 — Daily News: Keep the Rikers Island closure on 2027 schedule

2021 Media Highlights

2020 Media Highlights

2019 Media Highlights

12/19/19 — WNYC: Will New York’s New Criminal Justice Laws Lead to More Trials?

12/10/19 — New York Daily News: Can we please talk about probation and parole? Supervision programs are throwing people back behind bars for technical violations

12/5/19 — The Gothamist: Teen Who Tried To Kill Himself On Rikers Was There For A Technical Parole Violation

11/15/19 — New York Times: Available: A 415-Acre Island With Manhattan Views. What to Build?

11/8/19 — Gotham Gazette: How the City's New Jails Plan Accounts for Those with Serious Mental Illness

11/5/19 — THE CITY: Proposed State Parole Overhaul Gains Wider Backing

10/22/19 — Gotham Gazette: A Closer Look at the Costs, and Savings, of Closing Rikers and Building Four New Jails

10/17/19 — New York Times: Goodbye, Rikers

10/16/19 — Gotham Gazette: The Right Side of Rikers History

10/16/19 — New York Daily News: After Rikers, what about the women?

10/13/19 — New York Daily News: EXCLUSIVE: NYC projects jail population will drop to 3,300 by 2026

10/13/19 — Spectrum News NY1: As Vote to Close Rikers Island Looms, Activists Increase Pressure on Politicians

10/9/19 — New York Daily News: Why close Rikers? An insider’s view

9/19/19 — New York Daily News: Cardinal Dolan calls on city to close Rikers Island

8/27/19 — New York Daily News: While overall NYC jail population drops, technical parole violators are on the rise

7/25/19 — Inside City Hall: Heat Wave Puts Renewed Focus on NYC Jail Infrastructure (TV)

7/23/19 — City and State: Jonathan Lippman says it’s too late to change course on closing Rikers

7/19/19 — City Limits: Max & Murphy: Borough Jails Plan Enters Key Phase

7/18/19 — Max & Murphy Podcast: City Plan to Replace Rikers Island Jails Moves Ahead (Radio)

7/15/19 — Gothamist: Rikers Island Dilemma: Stop Taking Addiction Meds, Or Stay Behind Bars

7/15/19 — New York Daily News: NYC jail admissions down almost 50% since 2014 in major achievement for criminal justice reform

7/9/19 — New York Law Journal: NY State Bar Association to Focus on Why Parolees End Up Back Behind Bars

6/20/19 — The Crime Report: Rikers Closing Imperiled by High Number of Parole Violators

6/18/19 — City Limits: Legislature Closing in on Narrow Reforms to the State’s Parole System

6/14/19 — QNS: ‘I know the hell of Rikers’: Kew Gardens jail proposal goes to borough hall hearing

6/13/19 — Inside City Hall: A New Spotlight on Conditions in NYC's Jail System

6/7/19 — Queens Eagle: AOC and Constantinides support a ‘renewable Rikers Island’

6/6/19 — NY Daily News: Stop staring at Manafort and look at Rikers Island’s predominant population

6/5/19 — Gotham Gazette: Rikers Commission Study Finds Local Jails Have No Impact on Property Values or Crime Rates

5/20/19 — MetroFocus: JUSTICE WEEK: “AFTER RIKERS: JUSTICE BY DESIGN” (TV)

5/17/19 — Gothamist: Johnson Unveils Criminal Justice Agenda with Focus on Reducing Jail Population

5/17/19 — Forest Hills Post: New Yorkers Support Mayor’s Borough Based Jail Plan: Poll

4/30/19 — Gothamist: NYC's Plan To Close Rikers Undermined By 'Lock Everybody Up' Parole Enforcement, Sources Say

4/18/19 — Bklyner: CB2 Land Use Committee Votes To Approve Atlantic Ave Jail Plan With Conditions

4/16/19 — Reason: How Even Legal Marijuana Use Can Land You in Jail

4/10/19 — Independent Budget Office: DOES IT TAKE THE COURT SYSTEM LONGER IN NEW YORK CITY TO PROCESS INDICTED FELONY CASES THAN ELSEWHERE IN THE STATE?

4/9/19 — Curbed NY: Can Rikers Island be reinvented with green infrastructure?

4/5/19 — Gotham Gazette: A Closer Look at Albany Democrats’ Compromise on Bail Reform

4/4/19 — NY Daily News: It’s a travesty that cash bail persists in New York State

3/22/19 — New Yorker: Inside the Mayor’s Plan to Close Rikers

3/21/19 — THE CITY: City Seeks to Move Mentally Ill Inmates to Hospitals

3/4/19 — Architectural Record: Architecture and Prison Reform

2/11/19 — The Crime Report: End the Parole-Prison ‘Revolving Door’, says former NY Chief Judge

2/7/19 — Politico New York: Bill would ease parole violation penalties, with support from prosecutors

2/4/19 — Episcopal News Service: As Episcopal Church pushes to end mass incarceration, New York church takes up bail reform

2/1/19 — Gotham Gazette: New York Democrats on Eliminating Cash Bail: Not When, But How

2/1/19 — New York Law Journal: NY Lawmakers Move Closer to Approving Criminal Justice Reform Legislation

2/1/19 — New York Times: Jail or Bail? There’s a New Option

1/31/19 — Trinity Church Wall Street: The Question of Rikers Island

1/25/19 — Wall Street Journal: NYC to Pay $3.3 Million to Family of Teen Who Languished at Rikers Island

1/22/19 — Brooklyn Daily Eagle: Former Chief Judge Lippman says plans for renovated jail in Brooklyn are too big

1/22/19— Politico New York: Rikers closure plan will soon begin public review

1/3/19 — The Villager: ‘Close Rikers’ Commission: Transparency needed

2018 Media Highlights

12/27/18 — Qns: Lippman commission projects state reforms could reduce NYC jail population by 3,000

12/20/18 — The Crime Report: NYC Rikers Shutdown Plan Called National ‘Model’ for Ending Mass Incarceration

12/19/18 — Curbed NY: Rikers shutdown report recommends smaller jails, more transparency

12/19/18 — New York Daily News: Jail commission report urges smaller new facilities and a Staten Island detention center

12/19/18 — Staten Island Advance: City should reconsider small jail facility on Staten Island, report says

12/17/18 — Gotham Gazette: As We Close Rikers, Criminal Justice Reformers are Ready for Full Partnership in Albany

11/21/18 — New School News: The New School Hosts Reimagining Justice: NYC Without Rikers

10/18/18 — The Crime Report: Women Ignored in Incarceration Reform, says New York Panel

8/16/18 — CBS New York: De Blasio Details Plan To Replace Rikers With Community-Based Jails

7/25/18 — Gotham Gazette: Key Question in Closing Rikers: How to Design Replacement Jails

7/24/18 – New York Times: Mayor Defends Sending Youths to Jails With Solitary Confinement

7/17/18 – City Limits: The Jail Next Door: A Look at the 14 Correctional Facilities in New York’s Neighborhoods

7/9/18 – City & State: Lippman Commission calls for expanding supervised release

6/19/18 – FiveThirtyEight: You’ve Been Arrested. Will You Get Bail? Can You Pay It? It May All Depend On Your Judge.

6/7/18 – Politico: Report: Closing Rikers hinges on bail reform

5/18/18  – Columbia Justice Lab: Transcript: Remarks of the Hon. Jonathan Lippman, Closing in on Closing Rikers: Parole Problems & Solutions

5/2/18  – The New York Times: Cash is Still Hard to Find in New York City Courthouses

4/30/18  – The National Law Journal: The 'Herculean' Effort to Close Rikers Island

4/29/18  – The Marshall Project: The People vs. Cy Vance

4/25/18  – Juvenile Justice Information Exchange: Formerly Incarcerated New Yorker Now Fights for Prison Reform for the Youth

4/19/18  – Gotham Gazette: The Justice System Case for Radical Incrementalism

4/13/18  – The Times Ledger: Report: Rikers can close ahead of schedule

4/6/18  – New York Law Journal: NYC DAs Sharply Divided on Proposal to Close Rikers Island

4/5/18  – Daily News: Rikers Island jails could close faster than expected, report says

4/5/18  – AM New York: Rikers Island jail complex could be closed by 2024

3/29/18  – WNYC: What Bail Reform Could Look Like in New York

3/29/18  – Nation Swell: How to Build a Better Jail

3/28/18  – WNYC: The State of Bail Reform in New York (Radio)

3/21/18  – AIANY: Twenty-First Century Jails

3/16/18  – Nation Swell: Our Bail System Isn't Working

3/12/18  – PBS: Rikers: What's Next? A Conversation (TV)

2/16/18  – Brooklyn Daily Eagle: Plan to enlarge & redesign Brooklyn House of Detention moves forward with Council deal

2/7/18  – Urban Omnibus: Siting Rikers’ Replacements

2/6/18  – WNYC: Probation and Parole and Mass Incarceration

1/4/18  – Bronx Free Press: First Rikers Island Jail to close

1/4/18  – NBC News: New York's notorious Rikers Island jail moves slowly toward closing

1/4/18  – Times Ledger: City will close first jail on Rikers Island this summer

1/4/18  – Amsterdam News: First step: de Blasio announces Rikers Island jail closure 

1/3/18  – Brooklyn Eagle: NYC's Thorny Issue: More prisons, fewer prisoners using old tactic: Decentralize

1/2/18  – Observer: NYC Takes First Major Step in Shuttering Notorious Rikers Island Prison Complex

1/2/18  – Qns: De Blasio announces he will close the first of nine jails on Rikers Island this summer

Post-Report Release 2017 Media Highlights

12/27/17 – Democracy Now: Outgoing NY City Council Speaker on Her Work to Close Rikers, Expand Living Wage, Protect Immigrants (TV) 

12/13/17 – AIANY: The Future of NYC Jails -- Closing Rikers Island and Beyond

12/13/17 – New York Daily News: De Blasio's major Rikers failure (Op-Ed)

12/10/17 – The Honorable Jonathan Lippman -- Relocating Riker's Island going too slow (Podcast) 

12/7/17 – Queens Chronicle: Councilwoman Crowley's committee hits city on Rikers plan

12/7/17 – Gotham Gazette: What's the [Data] Point? 10, with Michael Jacobson (Podcast)

12/4/17 – NY 1: NYC Moving Ahead with Plan to close Rikers Within 10 Years

12/4/17 – City Limits: Council Committee Grills Mayor's Team on Plan to Close Rikers

12/4/17 – Wall Street Journal: NYC Defends Progress in Closing Rikers Jail Complex

12/4/17 – NY Post: Former state judge: NYC moving too slow to close Rikers 

11/30/17 – CUNY Criminal Justice Matters: Bill Moyers: Rikers and Justice (TV)

11/30/17 – NPR: Despite Scrutiny, Rikers Island's 'Culture Of Violence' Persists, Report Says

11/28/17 – The Washington Post: Our cash bail system isn't working. We can fix it. (Op-Ed) 

11/24/17 – The Atlantic: The Failure of New York’s Bail Law

11/22/17 – New York Daily News: Judges told to build kinder courtrooms under city's new program

11/21/17 – Governing: To Reduce Recidivism, New York City Tries a Bold New Approach

11/20/17 – Gotham Gazette: City Council Ends Term with Flurry of Oversight Hearings

11/20/17 – New York Daily News: Move swiftly to reimagine Rikers Island (Op-Ed) 

11/16/17 – Poughkeepsie Journal:  State ignores bail reform at a stiff price to justice

11/16/17 – New York Daily News: De Blasio takes first step in shutting down Rikers by looking for consultants

11/16/17 – City Limits: The Three Questions NYC Must Answer if it is Serious About Closing Rikers

11/15/17 – Times Union: A big disadvantage for New York defendants

11/15/17 – New York Daily News: Reforms are on the way to improve delivery of justice and reduce jail spending

11/8/17 – The Marshall Project: New York Courts Say: Hand It Over

11/6/17 – Prison Legal News: The Elusive Dream: Closing Rikers Island

11/2/17 – New York Daily News: Jail workers should get on the Rikers closure bandwagon: The old facility is awful for them, too (Op-Ed) 

10/26/17 – AM New York: It's Time for Action in Rikers (Op-Ed)

10/24/17 – Amsterdam News: Reforming our bail system and empowering our disenfranchised communities (Op-Ed)

10/24/17 – City & State: Our Shared Vision of a Post-Rikers New York (Op-Ed)

10/19/17 – Gotham Gazette: As We Close Rikers, Setting Our Sights on Essential State-Level Reforms (Op-Ed) 

10/18/17 – New York Daily News: Scott Stringer backs closing Rikers faster than de Blasio’s plan

10/11/17 – Wall Street Journal: New York City Jails Often Manage ‘Troublesome’ Inmates with Force, Federal Monitoring Team Finds

10/11/17 – The Brooklyn Ink: Brooklyn Detention Center faces the spotlight if Rikers closes

10/10/17 – The Crime Report: Imprisoning the Mentally Ill: America’s ‘Shameful Tragedy’

10/10/17 – Politico: Federal monitor report shows rate of progress reform at Rikers remains slow

10/7/17 – New York Daily News: A jail is not a hospital (Op-Ed)  

10/6/17 – CUNY TV: Closing Rikers: Where Should New Jails Go? (TV Interview)

10/5/17 – Queens Chronicle: Pols support Kew jail reactivation proposal

10/5/17 – Courthouse News: Broken Bail System in NYC Drives Civil Rights Claims

10/5/17 – NY1: Rikers Activists: Ten Years is too long (TV Interview) 

10/3/17 – New York Nonprofit Media: Nonprofits help shift Mayor de Blasio’s opinion on closing Rikers, Commission leaders say

10/3/17 – DNA Info: Reopen Kew Gardens Jail Under Plan to Close Rikers, Politicians Urge Mayor

10/2/17 – New York Daily News: De Blasio eyes ‘ideal’ Queens site for new jail as Rikers closes

10/2/17 – Qns: Lawmakers believe former Kew Gardens detention center would eliminate need for community jails if Rikers Island closes  

10/1/17 – New York Daily News: Queens pols support site for new jail in their borough

9/27/17 – City & State: How we can make New York City’s bail system fairer right now

9/13/17 – New York Daily News: Advocacy group to forge ahead with efforts to see Rikers closed

8/30/17 – BRONXNET: Ana Oliveira speaks with Daren Jaime (TV Interview)

8/29/17 – New York Times: To Shrink Jail Population, a Bail Program is Expanding

8/24/17 –  New York Daily News: Cuomo cites inmates' assault charges as proof to shut Rikers

8/9/17 – New York Daily News: State Sen. Gianaris pushes for New York bail system reform bill

8/8/17 – WNYC: How American Can Cut the U.S. Prison Population in Half (Podcast)

7/27/17 – DNA Info: Bronx BP Calls for Bail Reform After Teen Freed From Rikers by Advocates

7/25/17 – Al Jazeera: #CloseRikers: Why shutting the most infamous jail in the US matters (Podcast)

7/19/17 – Gotham Gazette: Rikers May Close. So Should Attica (Op-Ed)

7/17/17 – Architectural Digest: Here’s How Rikers Island Could Be Improved by Good Design

7/14/17 – Gothamist: Rikers Replacement Proposal Calls for Local ‘Justice Hubs’ With Roof Decks, Patios

7/13/17 – City Lab: Designing the Opposite of Rikers

7/13/17 – Curbed New York: In lieu of Rikers, advocates propose ‘justice hubs’ with art studios, community gardens

7/12/17 – New York Daily News: Rikers can close in less than a year (Op-Ed)

6/29/17 - New York Nonprofit Media: Women and Rikers (Podcast)

6/29/17 – DNAinfo: Brooklyn House of Detention Could Expand to Aid Rikers Closure: Official

6/26/17 – Newsweek: Should New York City Just Throw Away the Key to Rikers Island?

6/26/17 – City & State: Torture Island: Glenn Martin On What To Do With Rikers (Podcast)

6/23/17 – Fordham Law News: Former NY Chief Judge and Author of Rikers Report Calls for Prison’s Closure at Gathering of Judges of Color

6/22/17 – New York Times: De Blasio to Unveil Plan for Rikers While Warning It ‘Will Not Be Easy’

6/22/17 – DNA Info: Mayor Releases ‘Long and Difficult’ Plan to Shutter Rikers in 10 Years

6/21/17 – Crains New York: The business case for closing Rikers (Op-Ed)

6/15/17 – New York Daily News: N.Y. senator pushes bill forcing NYC to shut down Rikers Island in three years

6/12/17 – Crain’s New York: Ten years to close Rikers Island? Here’s how to cut that in half

5/23/17 – The Village Voice: Close Rikers In Under 10 Years? It Can Be Done

5/17/17 - The Nation: How Closing a Jail Could Make New York City Stronger

Report Release 2017 Media Highlights

5/15/17 - City & State: Women in Rikers: Why Gender Matters When We Talk About Reform (Op-Ed)

5/11/17 - New York Daily News: An urgent checklist for closing Rikers (Op-Ed)

5/9/17 - Thirteen/Metrofocus: RIKERS: AN AMERICAN JAIL (TV Interview)

5/9/17 - The Atlantic: Lessons From Rikers Island (Op-Ed)

5/4/17 - Politico: Lippman visits with Council members to push Rikers closure plan

4/26/17 - Al Jazeera: Ex-inmates hail plan to close Rikers Island prison

4/26/17 - Politico: De Blasio calls on Council to begin Rikers' closure by starting jail siting discussion

4/23/17 - City & State: Q&A WITH FORMER COURT OF APPEALS CHIEF JUDGE JONATHAN LIPPMAN ON THE FUTURE OF RIKERS (Podcast)

4/17/17 – Jonathan Lippman, Radicalized by Rikers (Podcast)

4/16/17 - Washington Post: New York’s smart criminal justice reform sets an example for Sessions to follow (Editorial)

4/10/17 - Newsday/amNY: Mayor de Blasio needs to take the lead on replacing Rikers

4/9/17 - The Sunday Times of London: Big jailbirds: airport plan for Rikers Island

4/9/17 - PIX 11’s Close Up with Marvin Scott: Closing Rikers and the week in Politics (TV Interview)

4/9/17 - WABC’s Up Close with Bill Ritter: Proposal to Shut Down Rikers Island (TV Interview)

4/6/17 - Amsterdam News: Kalief's legacy: Rikers closure set, yet could prove to be long, grueling process

4/6/17 - New York Daily News: As pols mull closing Rikers, New Yorkers overwhelmingly support reforming jail system: survey

4/6/17 - Queens Chronicle: Yes, close the Rikers Island jails (Editorial)

4/5/17 – Mother Jones: NYC Came Up Witha Brilliant Strategy for Cutting Its Jail Population in Half

4/4/17 - USA Today: A Rikers Island terminal for LaGuardia Airport?

4/4/17 - Village Voice: It’s Put Up or Shut Up Time for Politicians Who Say They Want to Close Rikers

4/3/17 - WNYC’s Brian Lehrer Show: Ending Mass Incarceration in NYC (Radio Interview)

4/3/17 - Politico: Rikers plan marks a shift for New York City, and its mayor

4/3/17 - DNA Info: Replacing Rikers Island With Local Jails is the 'Only Solution': Commission

4/3/17 - New York Times: Closing Rikers Without a Road Map (Editorial)

4/2/17 - FOX 5: New plans proposed to close down Rikers Island jail

4/2/17 - CBS New York: Independent Commission Behind Push To Close Rikers Island Jail Complex Issues Formal Report

4/2/17 - NY1: Independent Commission Recommends Closure of Rikers Island, Re-purposing Jail for Airport Runway or Wastewater Treatment

4/2/17 - WNYC: Commission Unveils Plan to Close Rikers Island

4/2/17 - New York Daily News: De Blasio’s jail break: The hard realities of his plans to close Rikers Island (Editorial)

4/2/17 - New York Times: Rikers Island Commission Unveils Plan to Shut Down Jail Complex

4/1/17 - NY1 Inside City Hall: Closing Rikers — But What’s the Plan? (TV Interview)

3/31/17 – DNAinfo: This is the Report That Spurred De Blasio to Close Rikers

3/31/17 - New York Times: Closing Rikers Island Is a Moral Imperative (Op-Ed)

3/31/17 - Huffington Post: They’re Finally Going To Close Rikers Island, America’s Monument To Jail Cruelty

3/31/17 - Fader: Mayor de Blasio Announces Closure Of Rikers Island Prison

3/31/17 - NPR: Rikers Island Could Be Closed And Replaced With Smaller Jails Around New York City

3/31/17 - VICE: New York Is Getting Serious About Closing the Hellish Jail on Rikers Island

3/31/17 - Politico: De Blasio commits to closing Rikers, with few specifics

3/31/17 - New York Times: Mayor Backs Plan to Close Rikers and Open Jails Elsewhere

Pre-Report Release 2017 Media Highlights

3/18/17 - New York Daily News: Potential closure of Rikers Island sparks dream opportunity for NYC developers, planners

3/18/17 - New York Daily News: Activists have been calling for the closure of the troubled jail complex

2/14/17 - Staten Island Advance: Commission for criminal justice reform seeks input at public hearing

2/10/17 - NY1 Inside City Hall: Judge Lippman Discusses the Independent Commission (TV Interview)

2016 Media Highlights

11/17/16 - Amsterdam News: Creating a more just NYC (Op-Ed)

11/8/16 - Metro US: Public voicing opinions on fate of Rikers Island

9/14/16 - Politico: Rikers commission seeks public input with new website

7/13/16 - Politico: Rikers commission to focus on three key areas

3/17/16 - Politico: Lippman announces members of criminal justice commission

2/11/16 - New York Times: Melissa Mark-Viverito, Council Speaker, Vows to Pursue New Criminal Justice Reforms