NEW YORK (AP) — Three corrections officers have been suspended following the death of a man incarcerated at New York City's troubled Rikers Island, jail officials said.
Officers found Ardit Billa, 29, unresponsive in his cell at around 12:25 a.m. on Saturday, said Patrick Rocchio, a city Department of Correction spokesperson. The department didn't provide further details other than to say the two officers rendered aid until medical personnel arrived. Billa was pronounced dead shortly after.
Rocchio
said the department notified the jail's court-appointed federal monitor, as well as other state and city agencies.
A federal judge in May said she would appoint an outside manager to “take all necessary steps” toward restoring order after declaring the city had failed to stem spiraling dysfunction and brutality in its jails.
“Any loss of life in our custody is a tragedy, and we are committed to a full review of the circumstances surrounding this incident,” New York City Correction Commissioner Lynelle Maginley-Liddie said in a statement.
The city medical examiner’s office said Thursday that the cause and manner of Billa's death is still pending.
Paul Idlett, president of the Correction Captains’ Association, a labor union, called Billa’s death “tragic” but said it was essential that the “evaluation of this incident is fair and all factors involved are considered.”
The Legal Aid Society of New York, which was representing Billa, called for an independent and impartial investigation. The organization noted he was housed in a unit for people with mental health issues that is supposed to have the most intensive level of supervision in the facility.
The group said the department should also immediately disclose to Billa's family the circumstances surrounding his death. Billa had been in custody at Rikers since February and faced assault charges.
“Rikers Island remains engulfed in a full-fledged humanitarian disaster," Legal Aid Society said in a statement. “The daily suffering we hear from our clients — whether from deplorable facility conditions, denial of access to medical care, or staff violence — and the mounting deaths underscore why the status quo cannot continue and transformative change is needed.”
