For immediate release: February 14, 2018
CONTACT: pressoffice@doc.nyc.gov, (718) 546-0631
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DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION TO INCREASE SAFETY FOR OFFICERS WITH DEDICATED ESU TEAMS FOR HIGHEST-RISK FACILITIES, ADDITIONAL TASERS, AND INCREASED COOPERATION WITH NYPD GANG INTEL BUREAU

The Department will enact a series of security measures, which will be completed this summer, meant to disrupt and significantly reduce violence in city jails and offer COs more protection   

NEW YORK— The de Blasio Administration announced today nearly $4.5 million to fund a rapid increase of safety and security measures designed to immediately address violence against New York City Department of Correction officers.

DOC plans a series of enhancements, which include:

• Adding dedicated Emergency Services Unit (ESU) patrol groups to high-violence facilities.
• Expanding the number of Tasers for emergency personnel and select uniform staff.
• Boosting cooperation and coordination with NYPD on intelligence-sharing and gang intelligence training, and assigning NYPD gang intelligence staff to DOC facilities.

These actions are being taken in response to recent unprovoked attacks against the city’s correction officers. The rollout is designed to disrupt the gang activity responsible for many of these vicious assaults and to safeguard those entrusted with keeping our city safe.

“With these high-visibility and comprehensive measures, we send a clear message to the gangs and violent persons in custody behind the recent attacks against our officers: We aren’t tolerating it,” said Department of Correction Commissioner Cynthia Brann. “These steps will be taken immediately to boost safety for our staff, especially those working in our highest-risk facilities. We want all our officers and staff to know that we have their backs, and they have the full support of the security apparatus at the Department’s disposal. We are acting aggressively to make sure our jails are safe.”   

The following measures will be completed by the end of June. We will:

• Add additional emergency response patrol units to the most high-violence facilities:
• Emergency Services Unit (ESU) is a highly trained team that responds to the most dangerous situations on Rikers, and dedicated ESU teams will be providing extra support during the busy and violence-prone shifts at the four most high-risk facilities – AMKC, GRVC, GMDC, and OBCC – at a cost of $3.6 million annually.
• Expand Taser deployment to personnel assigned to high-violence areas of the jails:
• Give Tasers to all ESU personnel and specially-trained captains assigned to restrictive housing units and other targeted areas – bringing the total number of staff with Tasers from 25 to 145.
• DOC has found that the mere presence of Tasers in jail facilities has helped to avert violence, and this increased presence will cost just $240K in the first year and $114K in the years following that. 

• Disrupt gang violence by expanding coordination and intelligence-sharing with NYPD Gang Intelligence Bureau:
• All Correction Intelligence Bureau officers will go through NYPD Gang Intelligence Bureau’s rigorous training to ensure that just as NYPD monitors gangs aggressively in the streets, DOC can do so in the jails with the same level of training and information.
• DOC and NYPD are developing a plan that will eventually result in the assignment of dedicated NYPD gang intel staff to the DOC Correctional Intelligence Bureau to assist in this effort, at a cost of $579K annually.

About the New York City Department of Correction
The New York City Department of Correction (DOC) provides for the care, custody, and control of persons accused of crimes or convicted and sentenced to one year or less of jail time. The Department manages 12 person in custody facilities, nine of which are located on Rikers Island. In addition, the Department operates two hospital Prison Wards (Bellevue and Elmhurst hospitals) and court holding facilities in each borough. During Fiscal Year 2017, the Department handled over 58,000 admissions and managed an average daily person in custody population of approximately 9,500 individuals. Our dedicated workforce of both uniformed and non-uniformed staff members represent the city’s BOLDEST.