The end for New York's most famous jail

Seemed like a good idea at the timeKALIEF BROWDER was 16 years old when he was arrested for allegedly stealing a backpack. When his family could not pay bail, he was sent to Rikers Island, New York's largest jail. There he spent around 800 days in solitary confinement; he was beaten by guards and other inmates and tried several times to kill himself. Because his hearings were delayed, he ended up spending three years on Rikers, all the while claiming his innocence. His case was dismissed in 2013 and he was released. But the damage had been done, and he eventually killed himself. His tale, not an unusual one, provoked a campaign to close the 'torture island', as inmates call it, altogether. Bill de Blasio, New York's mayor, agrees. On March 31st he vowed to begin a ten-year process to shut it.Three-quarters of the roughly 9,400 people held in New York City's jails have not been convicted of anything. Most are housed on Rikers. The place has become a warehouse for people too poor to post bail or suffering from addiction or mental-health problems (jails, unlike prisons, are locally operated and hold people serving short sentences or awaiting...Continue reading
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