No Federal Takeover at Rikers, Even As The Lack of Bathrooms Leads People to Urinate on the Floor

A federal judge endorsed New York Citys plan to address issues on Rikers Island, officially leaving control of the infamous jail in the citys hands. In April, a United States attorney made the case that the jail should be relinquished to federal York Citys official plan to fix the jail was submitted May 17. At the time, Department of Correction Commissioner Louis Molina told PIX11 his department was absolutely committed to addressing issues inside city jails. In a court order issued Tuesday, Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain wrote the submitted plan is entirely within the power of the Commissioner, and more broadly the Mayor, to action plan represents a way to move forward with concrete measures now to address the ongoing crisis at Rikers Island, the order continued. As part of the court order, there is potential for remedial relief to be given to New York City should the Department of Correction not fulfill their commitments and demonstrate t