December 29th, 2023Press Release
NYC Public Advocate Passes Eleven Bills In 2023
New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams passed eleven pieces of legislation through the City Council in 2023 as prime sponsor. These bills range from public safety measures, to environmental protections and housing safety, to helping veterans and homeless New Yorkers access services. To date, Public Advocate Williams has passed 26 pieces of legislation since taking office, more than all previous officeholders combined.
Among the legislation passed this year were several reforms to the criminal legal system and city jails, amid an ongoing crisis on Rikers Island. They include:
Intro 549-A, which would end the use of solitary confinement in city jails by putting in place enforceable standards that uphold both the due process rights and well-being of incarcerated people, closing loopholes and focusing on rehabilitation.
Int. 349-A, which mandates that the Department of Correction (DOC) provides dyslexia screenings for incarcerated individuals and evidence-based intervention programs to individuals who are diagnosed with dyslexia during the screening.
Intro 887-B, which requires the DOC to regularly report on information on status of and services related to individuals in custody whose gender identity is different from the sex assigned to the individual at birth, including, transgender, gender nonconforming, non-binary, or intersex individuals.
The Public Advocate passed three bills to increase transparency and accountability in policing, including:
Intro 586-A would require the NYPD to log and report basic information on level one, two, and three investigative encounters between the police and civilians, in order to collect data and help prevent bias and over-policing. This reporting can be accomplished through a brief smartphone survey, and does not apply to casual conversations with the community.
Intro 585-A would require the NYPD to turn over body-worn camera footage to the Department of Investigation's Inspector General for the NYPD within ten days of receiving a request. If footage is withheld, the Department must provide a written explanation to DOI, within ten business days which includes a citation to the specific law or laws that prohibit disclosure.
Intro 781-A would require the NYPD to document information surrounding vehicle stops, including the justification for the stop, whether an observed offense was cited as justification, and whether the offense constituted an infraction, a violation, a misdemeanor or felony.
In line with the Public Advocate’s annual release of the Worst Landlord Watchlist, this year he passed Intro 583-A, the “Worst Landlord Law,” to help prevent fraudulent repairs by bad landlords by denying self-certification for repeat offenders, and increase accountability for failure to correct hazardous violations, including by increasing financial penalties.
Additionally, to support the creation of sustainable housing, Intro 689-A would broaden the parameters for certain green infrastructure project incentives to include in one to four family homes and eliminate fees for those projects.
To further address the housing and homelessness crisis, he passed Intro 190-A to produce a statement of rights of homeless New Yorkers both outside of and within the city’s shelter system, as well as standards required to be met within shelters. The law mandates that the city distribute information about these rights to individuals in need.
Another bill passed by the public advocate is also centered on informing New Yorkers of their rights and resources – Intro 1244 provides veterans with information about city services available to them, both online and through distribution of pamphlets in community spaces.
Finally, Intro 805-A will require the Department of Transportation (DOT) to expedite studies of traffic crashes involving pedestrian fatalities or serious injuries every four years, and to make reports available on any location with four or more such incidents. These studies would analyze the factors behind crashes and develop strategies to improve pedestrian safety.
In addition to legislative achievements, the office released key reports this year to inform the public, review agency actions, and shape policy discussions through recommendations. These included Out of Service: Creating an Equitable Transit System for New York City, a report to outline the inequities disabled New Yorkers experience while using public transit in New York City, and Orange Sky, Red Alert: A Review of Air Quality Emergencies in NYC, which finds shortcomings in the city’s response to the air quality emergency.
The Public Advocate’s office also addressed New Yorkers’ needs through the Constituent Services team. In 2023, they provided direct assistance to the public on issues including housing and utilities, health access, education, and much more. Whether virtually or face to face, they come up against challenging issues for New Yorkers who need an advocate in their city and in their government. From June 2022 to June 2023, our unit received and addressed nearly 2600 constituent cases related to federal, state, and local government.
After an extremely productive 2023 in the areas of legislation, policy, community affairs and engagement, and constituent services, the office is resolved to continue to hold the government accountable, lift up the needs of New Yorkers, and deliver real change in our city.
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December 20th, 2023Press Release
NYC Council To Vote On Public Advocate’s Landmark Bill To Ban Solitary Confinement
NEW YORK: The New York City Council will vote on a bill to ban solitary confinement today, legislation from Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams to prohibit the isolating practice in city jails. This bill marks the most comprehensive and concrete legislative effort to end the practice of solitary, which the United Nations defines as torture, on a citywide level.
“Solitary confinement is inhumane, and its presence in our city is indefensible,” said New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams on the bill. “Committing an infraction in jail can cause you to lose privileges, not basic human rights. People in solitary are isolated, denied human contact and connection, denied support, and come out of these deplorable conditions worse than when they went in – and some don’t come out at all. Banning solitary – not just in name, but in practice – is good for public safety. This bill will make our jails and our city safer, and correct an immoral injustice that has no place in New York. I thank the Speaker and City Council for their support of this bill, and thank the advocates and impacted people and families who have turned pain into purpose and brought us to this historic moment.”
While city officials have claimed that solitary confinement is not being utilized, the practice has continued on Rikers Island in all but name. Extended, unchecked periods of isolation have been found to cause immense damage to the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of people subjected to it, and have not been found to be either a deterrent against violent infractions or a solution to prevent future harm. To the contrary, time spent in solitary is linked to increased violence in jails and increased rates of recidivism.
Intro 549-A, co-prime sponsored by Council Members Rivera, Cabán, Hudson, Riley, Won, and Restler, will end this de facto solitary confinement by putting in place enforceable standards that uphold both the due process rights and well-being of incarcerated people, closing loopholes and focusing on rehabilitation. It allows for temporary separation and de-escalation of conflict for safety purposes in specific instances, while preventing the torture of extended isolation. Crucially, it sets minimum standards for what constitutes a cell and out-of-cell time, and enshrines other guidelines from the Board of Correction into law to ensure that the Department of Correction cannot circumvent these standards.
Under Intro 549-A, a person can be placed in “de-escalation confinement” to address an immediate issue, then if necessary, to an alternative unit that still permits a level of separation without the harm of isolation. It applies the decades-old standard of 14 hours out-of-cell time to all people in jail, including in alternative units. It provides legal assurance that even in alternative units, incarcerated people will have a level of interaction with others, and ensures that due process is employed throughout any period of separation. The bill further mandates that people in alternative units will receive programming designed to prevent future harmful behaviors
“There has been a long campaign of misinformation about solitary in New York City, and about the components and impact of this bill, but the reality is that no matter what terminology you use, people are facing the cruel and unusual punishment of isolation, and carrying the damage of that torture for the rest of their lives. This is happening in our city, and we cannot look away,” continued Public Advocate Williams. “Corrections officers face real difficulties and challenges. Those challenges, though, are not and will not be caused by a bill being voted on today. This bill simply provides an enforceable and effective way to do what we should already have been doing to uphold minimum standards of safety and decency on Rikers. Opponents of banning solitary are trying to uphold a status quo of crisis and inhumanity, and we cannot allow that in our city.”
“For decades, solitary confinement has been used as a disciplinary tool in our jail system, and the reality is this: no matter what you call it, solitary confinement is horrific, and inhumane. Human rights experts have declared that solitary confinement is torture," said Council Member Carlina Rivera, Chair of the Committee on Criminal Justice. “As Chair of the Committee on Criminal Justice, passing Int. 549 has been one of my top priorities, and I’m proud to support this legislation. We must strive for a criminal legal system that leads the nation in reforms rather than accepting a status quo where our neighbors are locked away in abusive and dangerous conditions.”
In addition to the harm that has gone unseen, the isolated voices unheard, there have been several high profile tragedies on Rikers in recent years. In 2015, after spending years in solitary, 22 year-old Kalief Browder took his own life. In 2021, Brandon Rodriguez died by suicide in solitary, and in 2019, Layleen Polanco lost her life when she did not receive adequate medical treatment while in solitary. Critically, this bill will go beyond the walls of Rikers to all jails in the city, and beyond the complex’s impending closure.
As New York City votes on the Public Advocate’s bill today, there is growing momentum for federal action on the practice. Last week, the entire Democratic House delegation from New York City urged passage of Intro 549-A, and a bill to enact a national ban was introduced in the House this summer. Polling shows that a majority of Americans support the measures to ban solitary which are included in the Public Advocate’s legislation.
The bill from the Public Advocate is one of five being voted on today, which also include legislation to report on law enforcement stops, to streamline oversight access to police body camera footage, and to provide veterans with information about city services available to them.
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December 20th, 2023Press Release
ICYMI: In New Op-ed, Williams Urges Passage Of And Dispels Misinformation About Legislation To Ban Solitary Confinement
NEW YORK: As the New York City Council is set to vote today on Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams’ bill to ban solitary confinement in New York City jails, and the administration continues to spread misinformation about the bill, the New York Daily News has published his op-ed entitled 'Banning solitary is saving lives.'
In the piece, the Public Advocate highlights the realities of solitary and the lifelong damages the punitive measure causes for individuals, writing that “By no definition is this “correction.” It’s just convenient cruelty… People in solitary are denied human contact and connection, denied support, and come out of these deplorable conditions worse than when they went in – and some, like Brandon Rodriguez and Layleen Polanco don’t come out at all.”
As the administration and others have perpetuated misinformation about the bill the Public Advocate further discusses the reality of the bill, explaining that “Our bill does not prevent removing someone from a situation where they are dangerous to themselves or others. Instead, it makes clear the process for doing so, and the minimum standards of humanity that system must follow. It puts in place a system of separation and de-escalation – not one of isolation…Put simply – committing an infraction in jail can cause you to lose privileges, not basic human rights.”
In closing, he argues in support of the legislation that “The fear-mongering around this bill is disingenuous, bordering on absurd… Solitary is inhumane – morally unjust, societally inexcusable, and practically ineffective at all but inflicting pain. It makes our jails less safe, and it makes our city less safe. The opponents of this bill, the opponents of banning solitary, are trying to uphold a status quo of inhumanity, and hiding their effort in misinformation,” urging that the city finally ban solitary confinement – not just in name, but in practice.
Full text of the op-ed is available below, and it can be viewed online here.
Banning Solitary is Saving Lives by Jumaane D. Williams, Public Advocate
If you ask the Adams administration, there is no solitary confinement in New York City’s jails. Or there is, but it’s called punitive segregation. Or wait, it’s not punitive, it’s for safety. Or hang on, we oppose solitary confinement morally, but we need it to keep Rikers safe. Or no, Rikers is unsafe and that’s why we can’t ban solitary confinement. Clearly?
The United Nations has designated solitary confinement as torture. But just across the East River, solitary confinement is still being used on Rikers Island, where pain is policy. There is a great deal of misinformation and misunderstanding about solitary in New York City, but the reality is no matter what terminology you use, people in custody awaiting trial are facing the cruel and unusual punishment of isolation, and carrying the damage of that treatment for the rest of their lives.
By no definition is this “correction.” It’s just convenient cruelty.
Many people who have spent time in solitary continue to suffer severely from debilitating trauma long after incarceration. They leave Rikers, but they still aren’t free.
People in solitary are denied human contact and connection, denied support, and come out of these deplorable conditions worse than when they went in — and some, like Brandon Rodriguez and Layleen Polanco don’t come out at all.
Despite what the mayor and Department of Correction argue, the city never stopped using solitary confinement. They just changed the name, hiding the practice as much in language as they do on an island, out of sight and out of mind. But our bill, scheduled for a City Council vote today, was crafted in collaboration with experts and people who have actually experienced this torture, as well as labor leadership, puts a ban in place that is clear, enforceable, and built on guidances that should already be in place.
The DOC has historically shirked oversight and accountability, creating loopholes that allow them to continue abusive practices like harmful isolation. Without clear, enforceable guidelines for what DOC can and cannot do to people in their custody, they will continue to create and exploit loopholes to maintain solitary by other names.
Our bill does not prevent removing someone from a situation where they are dangerous to themselves or others. Instead, it makes clear the process for doing so, and the minimum standards of humanity that system must follow. It puts in place a system of separation and de-escalation — not one of isolation. Our bill also presents the opportunity for programming aimed at rehabilitation and correction.
Put simply — committing an infraction in jail can cause you to lose privileges, not basic human rights. We can de-escalate conflict, and provide programs and resources to prevent future harm, or we can perpetuate it by inflicting irreparable harm to our fellow New Yorkers’ mental health. We can have the due process our legal system was founded on, or we can deny it.
No one is saying there shouldn’t be consequences for infractions in jails. But those consequences shouldn’t be carried for the rest of a person’s life. Most people detained on Rikers Island will at some point be returning to their communities. If the response to every misstep or harmful behavior is isolation, they will be unprepared for reentry. Right now, time spent in solitary is linked to increased violence in jails and increased rates of re-arrest — banning solitary is good for public safety.
The fear-mongering around this bill is disingenuous, bordering on absurd. If we prohibit torture on Rikers Island, argue opponents, then Rikers will be dangerous, in a state of crisis! But as we all know, their hysterical hypothetical is already ongoing.
The problems detractors attribute to this bill had been happening for years before it’s even passed. It is true that correction officers face real challenges and have valid fears of dangers on Rikers that must be rectified — but that is not connected to a ban on solitary which hasn’t happened yet, and won’t be caused by this prohibition.
Solitary is inhumane — morally unjust, societally inexcusable, and practically ineffective at all but inflicting pain. It makes our jails less safe, and it makes our city less safe.
The opponents of this bill, the opponents of banning solitary, are trying to uphold a status quo of inhumanity, and hiding their effort in misinformation. They want us to look away from the suffering. But people have been crying out in pain for too long, and our city has to finally hear their isolated voices in one moral mandate: ban solitary now.
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December 20th, 2023Press Release
NYC Public Advocate's Statement On Council's Passage Of His Landmark Legislation To Ban Solitary Confinement And Enhance Police Transparency
"Today the city council passed key legislation, with veto-proof majorities, to advance the causes of justice, equity, and public safety. I thank them for their support of my bills to ban solitary confinement and advance transparency in policing, among other bills. This legislation will be transformative in advancing public safety and justice.
"Leading up to this vote, there was a concerted misinformation campaign that misled the public about what these bills will achieve. Instead of honestly engaging with the realities of the legislation and its impact, opponents invented imaginary legislation — then condemned it.
"Now that these bills have been passed, I hope that the administration will work with us to ensure they are enacted and implemented effectively.
"We have a moral mandate to do all we can to end systemic injustices and inequities, to build policies that make New Yorkers safer. We can have better policing and safer streets at the same time. We can protect corrections officers and basic human rights at the same time.
"But if we don’t recognize these realities, we will never be able to make the changes we need. I ask the opponents of these bills to look back at the last time they opposed reforms, in 2013, and to not repeat the mistakes of decades past."
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December 20th, 2023Press Release
NYC Council To Vote On ‘How Many Stops’ Act To Increase Police Transparency And Improve Public Safety
NEW YORK: The New York City Council will vote today on the ‘How Many Stops’ Act, key policing transparency and reform legislation. Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams is co-prime sponsor with Council Member Alexa Avilés of one half of the act, a bill which would provide vital reporting and transparency around stops conducted by the New York City Police Department. This information is crucial to collect data around the implementation and impact of police reform bills.
The legislation, Intro 586-A, would require the NYPD to log and report basic information on level one, two, and three investigative encounters between the police and civilians. Officers would report on the race, age, and gender of the New Yorker approached, any factors leading to the interaction, and its outcomes. This reporting can be accomplished through a brief smartphone survey, and does not apply to casual conversations with the community. This information is critical to prevent the practices that led to the abuse of stop, question, and frisk prior to passage of the Community Safety Act in 2013.
“Effectively producing public safety based on results, not hysteria, means getting critical information about whether and how policing reforms are being implemented on the ground in our communities. New Yorkers have a right to know this information, and elected officials have an obligation to create policies based on it to ensure community safety and prevent injustices,” said Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams on the bill. “Through simple reporting on NYPD stops, we can prevent the kinds of bias-based policing we’ve seen in the past, build trust in often over-policed areas, and continue the work that began a decade ago amid the height of stop, question, and frisk. We should all be working together for better policing and safer streets, and we can only do that if we have transparency about how police and civilians interact in our streets.”
Council Member Avilés said, “Today the City Council will vote on the How Many Stops Act (HMSA), a critical piece of legislation that will help our communities breathe a little easier. HMSA will allow for policing data related to stops of New Yorkers at the hands of NYPD public information. This data will shed light on what many New Yorkers believe is a pattern of racial profiling from the NYPD and will help increase accountability and transparency. The relationship between the NYPD and our communities has consistently been filled with tension. With this higher standard of reporting we can begin to repair harm and establish a consistent structure of accountability. While this legislation will not resolve everything, I want to thank the families of victims of police violence who have worked tirelessly in pursuit of justice, and we honor the memory of their loved ones with the passage of today’s legislation that will bring us closer to true community safety.”
Enacting this legislation will address issues of underreporting stops and ensure stops are legal and legitimate, as well as inform future policies. It furthers efforts of accountability and takes steps toward increasing trust between law enforcement and historically over-policed New Yorkers.
During the Bloomberg administration, the bias-based abuses of stop, question and frisk were ruled unconstitutional, and a federal monitor was put in place over the NYPD. That monitor has recently reported an alarming rise in similar tactics, with 24% of stops considered unconstitutional and 97% of stops directed toward Black and Brown New Yorkers. Aggregating and assessing information about interactions on the streets is the most effective way to ensure that proper policies are in place and followed to establish better policing and safer streets, preventing the abuses of the past which saw more young Black men stopped in one year than lived in the city of New York at the time.
It was only through shared data that these abuses were addressed a decade ago, and as part of the Joint Remedial Process in the federal court ruling on stop, question, and frisk, reporting on Level 1 and 2 stops, which is encompassed in today's legislation, was recommended to prevent future abuses.
Intro 586-A requires reporting only on “Level 1 and 2 investigative encounters,” defined in the NYPD Patrol Guide as interactions with a specific law enforcement or investigative purpose. Casual conversation, such as those which help strengthen community relations, are excluded from reporting. Reporting can also be accomplished in mere seconds on a smartphone, preventing undue burden.
“Deliberate efforts to mislead the public about this bill have created an environment of misinformation and misunderstanding – exactly the kind of confusion and conflict that hard data can combat,” continued Public Advocate Williams. “The How Many Stops Act merely requires quick reporting on investigatory stops, not every interaction. Whatever the fear mongering has fabricated, the reality is that this bill, crafted with NYPD input, merely requires sharing basic data on the number and nature of law enforcement stops. I believe that a department with the technological capabilities the NYPD has displayed will be able to do this reporting quickly and effectively.”
The second bill in the ‘How Many Stops’ Act, Intro 538, is sponsored by Council Member Crystal Hudson and requires the NYPD to report on instances in which an individual denies consent to a search.
“The How Many Stops Act is a common sense, good government package that will bring much-needed transparency to the NYPD,” said Council Member Crystal Hudson, Sponsor of Intro. 538. “I’m proud to have joined Public Advocate Williams, Council Member Avilés, and the scores of advocates, namely Justice Committee and Communities United for Police Reform, in the fight for the passage of this vital legislative package. We must assure our communities that the NYPD will be held accountable and that our City is committed to ending the culture of impunity and abuse that pervades the department. Once law, these bills will give New Yorkers a more complete picture of the police department's activities in our communities, mandating the full and accurate reporting of police interactions with the public, and ensuring the NYPD is adhering to the City’s Right to Know Act, creating safer communities for us all.”
The bill from the Public Advocate is one of five being voted on today, which also include legislation to ban solitary confinement, to streamline oversight access to police body camera footage, and to provide veterans with information about city services available to them.
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December 18th, 2023Press Release
1199seiu Endorses Solitary Confinement Ban, Policing Transparency Legislation
1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East today announced its support for key City Council bills, sponsored by the Public Advocate, to ban solitary confinement in New York City jails and to require NYPD reporting on the number and nature of stops it conducts.
“1199SEIU strongly supports passage of Int. 549 and Int. 586 to protect the constitutional rights of all New Yorkers and ensure that justice is administered fairly and without racial bias. With NYPD stops again on the rise, it is crucial for the public to have access to data about how police interactions are impacting different demographics and communities throughout our city. And in city jails, we must end the cruel and inhumane practice of solitary confinement, which can cause irreparable, lifelong trauma and has been linked to self-harm and suicides. These reforms are long overdue and necessary to building a fairer and more effective criminal justice system,” said George Gresham, 1199SEIU President.
“1199SEIU is at the forefront of standing up for working people, for progress, and for justice,” said New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams. “Members of 1199 are working on Rikers every day to promote and preserve the safety and well-being of people on both sides of the bars, to support systems which make our jails and communities safer. They are committed to the health of our city and everyone in it. It's an honor to have their support in our movement to ban solitary – not just in name, but in practice – in our city. It is equally exciting to have their voices amplify the need for the How Many Stops Act, to provide transparency and allow for accountability in policing. Work that began over a decade ago to protect community safety with better policing is at a critical moment, and I’m proud to stand with 1199’s leadership and membership to get this done.”
Intro 549, sponsored by Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams and Council Member Carlina Rivera, would put in place an enforceable ban on solitary confinement in New York City jails. While the U.N. has designated solitary as torture, the practice of punitive isolation currently continues in the city under other names. The legislation has a veto-proof majority of Council Members as co-sponsors.
“We’re at a critical moment and have the opportunity to make our criminal legal system more just and humane. I am proud to sponsor legislation to ban solitary confinement and bring accountability to police interactions with the public, and commend 1199 SEIU for their public support of these bills that will advance true public safety” said Council Member Carlina Rivera, Chair of the Committee on Criminal Justice.
Intro 586, one half of the How Many Stops Act, is sponsored by Public Advocate Williams and Council Member Alexa Avilés. It would require the NYPD to report basic information on level one, two, and three investigative encounters between the police and civilians. This information is critical to prevent the practices that led to the abuse of stop, question, and frisk prior to passage of the Community Safety Act in 2013.
“Organized labor has a decades-spanning history championing civil rights causes,” said Council Member Alexa Avilés. “I’m grateful to see 1199 continue in that legacy with their endorsement of the How Many Stop Act. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity from the shop floor to our city blocks. Thank you for standing with us in this fight to protect peoples’ rights and safety.”
1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East is the largest healthcare union in the country, representing some 200,000 healthcare workers in New York City and 450,000 across the East Coast.
