Mon Dec 09 18:50:00 UTC 2024: ## City Council Sues Mayor Adams Over Rikers Island Solitary Confinement
**New York, NY** – The New York City Council and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams filed a lawsuit Monday against Mayor Eric Adams, challenging his emergency order suspending key provisions of a law banning solitary confinement at Rikers Island and city jails.
The lawsuit argues that Mayor Adams violated New York State Executive Law 24 by exceeding his emergency powers. The law permits the declaration of an emergency only in extreme situations like disasters or riots, a condition the lawsuit claims was not met. The Council contends that the Mayor’s action circumvents a duly passed local law (Local Law 42) that he previously vetoed. Council Speaker Adrienne Adams called the Mayor’s action an “unprecedented abuse of power.”
Mayor Adams, who signed the emergency order on July 27th, claims the suspension is necessary to maintain safety within the city’s jails. His administration argues that the law removes crucial tools for managing jail violence and conflicts with existing court orders. A spokesperson for the Mayor stated that solitary confinement was already eliminated in 2019 and the order is narrowly focused on reducing violence. However, the lawsuit points out that the Mayor failed to make his case before Judge Laura Taylor Swain, who oversees a federal lawsuit concerning jail conditions.
The lawsuit further alleges that Mayor Adams’s frequent use of emergency orders – over 700 in three years – sets a dangerous precedent, exceeding the number issued by previous mayors significantly. Public Advocate Williams criticized the Mayor’s actions, stating he is attempting to maintain a dangerous status quo at Rikers. The suit seeks to invalidate the Mayor’s emergency order and underscores a broader challenge to his use of executive powers.
First Piper 