The New York City Department of Correction said that three Rikers Island staff members have been suspended in connection with the jail's latest inmate death.
The department said that 40-year-old Michael Nieves had been at the jail since June 8th, after a burglary arrest. During his time at Rikers, two correction officers and a captain failed to respond for at least ten minutes after Nieves slit his own throat with a razor, according to the New York Times.
Nieves died Tuesday night at Elmhurst Hospital, becoming the 13th Rikers inmate to die in 2022. DOC Commissioner Louis Molina called it "a painful loss," and said that they will continue to investigate "the circumstances surrounding this incident."
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The Legal Aid Society blamed Nieves' death on the Adams administration for "failing to respond to the gross incompetence of its staff."
NYC Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and Comptroller Brad Lander said in a joint statement that it was "not the first time that officers stood by passively during a suicide attempt. While some corrections staff are working intensely to improve health and safety on the island, others are actively undermining these efforts."
Williams and Lander also called the recent death another example of why the jail needs to close.
"Those in charge of the wellbeing of detained people must be held accountable when the basic standards of human decency are not met," the joint statement read. "The City must renew and expedite its efforts to close the jail facilities at Rikers."
