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Early Saturday morning, 28-year-old Erick Tavira died by apparent suicide in his cell while awaiting trial inside the sprawling jail complex known as Rikers Island in New York City. His was the 17th death this year on Rikers, which has long come under harsh federal scrutiny and, more recently, renewed calls for closure as the death toll keeps climbing.
Following Tavira’s death, Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and four other New York City politicians made an unannounced visit to the George R. Vierno Center (GRVC) on Rikers, where Tavira was housed. Reports from both prisoners and guards, they said, were more than troubling: limited access to basic or emergency medical care, twice daily strip searches, and a glaring lack of food, mental health services, and programming.
Perhaps most jaw-dropping? Reports of 25-hour lockdowns for men in the center’s general population.
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