As Mayor Adams moves to attempt to remedy absenteeism at Rikers Island, a war of ideas is erupting over the best way to fix the city’s jail complex and what should be done with a reworked facility.

Mr. Adams wants “to terminate those who are abusing the sick leave procedures” at Rikers and has said he needs “the opportunity to implement our plan.” No administration could fix the long problematic facility in “less than four months,” he asserts.

A former prosecutor in the Queens District Attorney’s Office, Jim Quinn, agrees, telling the Sun he thinks “the mayor should be given some time to settle the problems at Rikers.”

Another viewpoint is held by a former director of New York City’s Office of Criminal Justice, Elizabeth Glazer, who tells the Sun she thinks a federal receiver is the only way to end the violence on Rikers Island.

Ms. Glazer said that the federal court  in Manhattan “raised the question of whether the issues at Rikers are of such a structural nature that the city simply does not have the power to address them.” 

She thinks they are: “I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that there are structural issues that cannot be resolved short of the appointing of a receiver,” Ms. Glazer said.

The Citizens Crime Commission president, Richard Aborn, agrees, telling the Sun: “I think eventually we end up with a federal receiver, it’s a question of how long.”

The problem, as Ms Glazer puts it, “is a question of whether the city can actually fix it.” She suspects that the city does not have the legal power that a receiver would to solve the structural problems at Rikers Island.

“A federal receiver doesn’t mean that we’re asking the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to take over our jail,” she said. “They put together a list of jail professionals, and the judge selects the right person.”

Ms. Glazer noted that a receiver could do things such as void contracts, which the city could not. It could hire new staff, “procure things like locking doors,” and “administer fair discipline” to absent staff.

The receiver would have whatever power the court saw fit to grant it, something that would be spelled out in the order appointing the receiver. That power could potentially reach far beyond that of the city.

Whether it is a receiver or the mayor, most spectators agree that the facilities on Rikers Island will have to be modernized and improved before their planned 2027 closure. 

These anticipated changes then raise another question: If Rikers Island needs to be modernized either way, does it still make sense to close it?

Council Member Robert Holden’s office doesn’t think so.

“Geographically the island itself is an ideal place for a correctional facility and the alternative plan,” Mr. Holden’s spokesman, Kevin Ryan, tells the Sun.

He says that it would be more dangerous and more expensive to build high-rise jail facilities elsewhere in the city, as is planned: “Any correction officer will tell you any time you have to transfer prisoners up and down an elevator or stairs there is more risk.”

“There is no question it needs to be modernized,” he added, but “it would be cheaper and safer to keep Rikers open.”

Ms. Glazer contends that “there is a lot to be said for having people that are incarcerated be closer to their families and services, which is what would happen if they moved into the city proper.”

She argues that the jail population could be reduced to the point where Rikers Island could be closed — 3,800 beds — if people were granted their constitutional right to a speedy trial.

“The length of time that people are staying has just ballooned, which has in turn increased the jail population,” Ms. Glazer said.

While there is no doubt that people are entitled to a speedy trial, Mr. Quinn, the former prosecutor, doesn’t see that as a currently achievable reality.

“There’s not a single defense organization in the city of New York that really wants a speedy trial,” he said. “The best thing for the defense is to extend the trial.”

Mr. Quinn contends that the best solution, which he argues is not talked about due to “ideological” reasons, would be to completely rebuild the facilities on Rikers Island. 

The jail complex “could be modernized and rebuilt on Rikers Island,” he said. “There are vacant facilities that can be torn down and built into a world-class facility.”

Mr. Quinn argues that 3,800 jail beds, which the city would be limited to under the plan to close Rikers Island, would not be enough.

“The only reason they came up with 3,800 is so they could close Rikers,” Mr. Quinn said.

What is clear is that the city currently spends a huge amount of money on each prisoner in order to maintain a dysfunctional and unconstitutionally cruel facility — money that could be used to modernize the facility.

A comptroller report from December 2021 found that the city “now spends $556,539 to incarcerate one person for a full year, or $1,525 per day,” about four times what it spent in 2011.