Rikers Island inmate found dead in his cell, marking 7th death this year
An inmate was found dead in his cell on Rikers Island Sunday morning, marking the seventh death this year at the embattled New York City lockup.
Curtis Davis, 44, had been held behind bars on $30,000 bond following his June 1 arrest in Brooklyn on assault and weapons possession charges, according to public records and law enforcement sources.
He was found unresponsive at the George R. Vierno Center facility on Rikers and efforts to revive him were unsuccessful, the sources said. It was unclear how he died.
His is at least the seventh inmate death at the troubled jail complex so far in 2023.
Last year, the city Department of Correction reported 19 in-custody deaths.
The DOC has since shifted its policy to no longer alert the public to prisoner deaths.
Cell block on Rikers Island. Gregory P. Mango
Sunday’s death marks the seventh this year at Rikers Island. Helayne Seidman
The change was revealed after a federal monitor accused the department of failing to tell its oversight team about five in-custody incidents that included deaths and injuries.
Mayor Eric Adams last week resisted a threatened federal takeover of the city’s jail system, claiming that the Big Apple was making strides to reform Rikers.
Damian Williams, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, disagreed, declaring he would push for the feds to take Rikers over due to the lack of “substantial progress” tied to the hellish conditions plaguing inmates and staff.
Curtis Davis was found unresponsive at the George R. Vierno Center facility. AP
Former Mayor Bill de Blasio inked a deal with the City Council to shutter the East River complex and replace it with large jails in every borough except Staten Island by 2027.
That plan had come under increased scrutiny as crime surged amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: New York Post
