Rikers Island Prison is New York City’s main prison complex, with ten facilities housing various types of inmates. It has a permanent population of 12,780 and an annual budget of $860 million. The complex has schools, clinics, chapels, sports fields, and shops. It has housed famous inmates and had a drawing by Salvador Dali stolen. The prison established special quarters for LGBTQ+ inmates in the 1970s, but the unit closed in 2005. Plans for a new segregated facility have been criticized for its 23-hour lockdown.
Rikers Island Prison, colloquially referred to as Rikers, is New York City’s principal prison complex, located on Rikers Island between the Queens burrows and the Bronx. The island is located directly adjacent to Laguardia Airport. New York City bought Rikers Island from a Dutch family in 1884 for $180,000 United States Dollars (USD) and it has been used as a prison ever since. Rikers is operated by the New York City Department of Correction, has a permanent population of 12,780 as of 2000, and has an annual budget of $860 million. During the Civil War, Rikers Island served as a military training facility.
Rikers Island Prison has ten different facilities. Otis Bantum Correctional Center, Anna M. Kross Center, George Motchan Detention Center, and George R. Vierno Center hold adult male inmates. The Eric M. Taylor Center holds convicted adolescent males and adults, and the Robert N. Davoren Complex holds primarily 16- to 18-year-old males. The Rose M. Singer Center houses convicted adolescent and adult women. The North Infirmary Command houses prisoners requiring medical treatment and the West Facility houses prisoners with contagious diseases. There is also a prison barge associated with the Rikers Island complex, the Vernon C. Bain Center, which contains 800 beds and houses medium- and maximum-security prisoners.
This prison can only be accessed from the unmarked Francis Buono Bridge in Queens. The complex, which has been called the largest penal colony in the world, has schools, clinics, chapels, sports fields, gymnasiums, grocery stores and various shops, a power plant and a bus depot. The daily population can exceed 20,000. Rikers Island Prison has housed many famous inmates, including musicians Lil Wayne, Sid Vicious, Tupac Shakur, Peter Steele, and football player Plaxico Burress. It housed a drawing by artist Salvador Dali, drawn as an apology because the artist could not attend a scheduled art conference for inmates, but the piece was stolen in 2003 and has not been recovered.
Rikers Island Prison established special quarters for homosexual, bisexual, and transgender inmates in the 1970s, but the unit closed in 2005 to increase security. A special hearing is now required for inmates requesting placement in this segregated accommodation. The New York City Department of Correction’s plans for the segregated facility have been criticized, as it provides for a 23-hour lockdown, identical to the one used as a disciplinary measure.
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