Riker's Island
| Rikers Island | |
|---|---|
(2004)
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| Location | The Bronx, New York City, United States |
| Nearest city | New York City |
| Coordinates | 40°47′28″N 73°52′58″W / 40.79111°N 73.88278°WCoordinates: 40°47′28″N 73°52′58″W / 40.79111°N 73.88278°W |
| Area | 413.17 acres (167.20 ha) |
| Established | 1932 |
| Governing body | New York City Department of Correction |
Rikers Island (/ˈraɪkərz/) is New York City's main jail complex, as well as the name of the 413.17-acre (167.204 ha) island on which it sits, on the East River between Queens and the mainland Bronx, adjacent to the runways of LaGuardia Airport. Supposedly named after Abraham Rycken who bought the island in 1664, the island is home to one of the world's largest correctional institutions and mental institutions and has been described as New York’s most famous jail. The island was originally under 100 acres (40 ha) in size, but has since grown over four times to more than 400 acres (160 ha). Much of the first stages of expansion was accomplished by convict labor hauling in ashes for landfill. The island itself is politically part of the Bronx, though it is included as part of Queens Community Board 1 and has a Queens ZIP code of 11370.
The jail complex, operated by the New York City Department of Correction, has a budget of $860 million a year, a staff of 9,000 officers and 1,500 civilians managing 100,000 admissions per year and an average daily population of 10,000 inmates. However, it has become notorious for abuse and neglect of prisoners in recent years, attracting increased media and judicial scrutiny that has resulted in numerous rulings against the New York City government. Rikers Island is also notorious for numerous assaults by inmates on staff (uniformed and civilian) resulting in often serious injuries making Rikers Island one of the most dangerous places to work. In May 2013, Rikers Island ranked as one of the ten worst correctional facilities in the United States, based on reporting in Mother Jones magazine. In 2017, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced his intention to close the prison complex at Rikers Island within 10 years, if the city's crime rate stays low and the number of prisoners drops from 10,000 to 5,000.
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