Letter to Mayor de Blasio regarding legislation requiring the NYC Department of Correction to post quarterly reports online about the people who are placed in solitary confinement at city jails

SUMMARY

A letter to Mayor de Blasio, drafted by the Committee on Corrections and Community Reentry, urged that the Mayor sign Int. 292-2014, a bill recently passed by the City Council that will require the New York City Department of Correction, in conjunction with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, to post quarterly reports online providing extensive information about that portion of the city jail inmate population who are placed in solitary confinement. The bill, the letter notes, is an important first step towards increasing transparency and accountability in the city’s jails and will provide useful data that can guide policy decisions.

BILL INFORMATION

Int. 0292-2014 –  would require the Commissioner of Correction, in coordination with the Commissioner of Health and Mental Hygiene, to post a quarterly report on its website regarding punitive segregation, restricted housing and clinical alternative to punitive segregation housing statistics for city jails.

OUTCOME

Signed into law by the Mayor – August 28, 2014