Adams defends Rikers record, says U.S. Attorney’s call for fed oversight ‘just doesn’t add up’

Mayor Adams defended his handling of Rikers Island on Tuesday in his first public rebuttal to U.S. Attorney Damian Williams’ announcement a day earlier that the long-troubled jail complex should be put under federal receivership.

Williams put out a statement Monday afternoon saying the federal government should assume control of Rikers and that he plans to ask a judge to place it under a receivership, which would shift responsibility of the city jails to the feds and allow more flexibility when it comes to solving some of the complex’s long-standing problems.

Adams has for months bristled at the suggestion that Rikers is in need of federal control though, and he didn’t change course Tuesday, saying that “unlike others” he did not view the city’s Department of Correction from a distance, but has instead visited the notorious jail complex it oversees repeatedly.

“I was on Rikers Island probably more than any other mayor in the history of this city,” Adams said during an unrelated press conference at NYPD headquarters Tuesday.

As it now stands, Rikers falls under the oversight of a federal monitor, which only has the ability to make recommendations. The monitor was put in place as the result of a 2015 court settlement between the city and the feds.

A receiver would have far more power than the monitor currently does and could take control over the entire Department of Correction — depending on how Manhattan federal court Judge Laura Taylor Swain rules.

In his statement Monday, Williams said the time has come to embrace such a decision.

“After eight years of trying every tool in the toolkit, we cannot wait any longer for substantial progress to materialize,” Williams said. “That is why my office will seek a court-appointed receiver to address the conditions on Rikers Island.”

But Adams continued to maintain on Tuesday that such a move is premature and that he and Correction Department Commissioner Louis Molina are making progress.

In defense of his handling of Rikers, Adams quoted from a report issued by the federal monitor in April, saying that “the practice and cultural changes that are being initiated have real potential to move the department towards reducing the imminent risk of harm faced by people in custody and staff.”

“This was in April this report came out — that Eric Adams’ administration has finally started to turn the corner in the Department of Correction. These words were never used under the previous administration. Never,” the mayor said. “What happened three months later? We’ve gone from real cultural changes, now we’re moving to that we need receivership? Something just doesn’t add up.”

Advocates who’ve been pushing for Rikers to come under a federal oversight would likely argue that much has happened since April.

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Earlier this month, federal monitor Steve Martin and deputy monitor Anna Friedberg concluded that Rikers is in no better shape now compared to when the city agreed to federal oversight eight years ago. Martin recommended the federal judge should hold the city in contempt for failing to comply with court orders to combat violence.

In June, Martin accused the Department of Correction of covering up five serious incidents at Rikers, including a beating that left a man paralyzed.

When asked about that lack of transparency, Adams responded: “then let’s correct that.”

As Adams played defense Tuesday, advocates cheered the U.S. Attorney on.

“We applaud the federal government’s statement calling for appointment of an independent receiver to bring the city jails into compliance with the law,” the Legal Aid Society said in a written statement. “Too many lives have been lost and damaged due to the city’s inability to manage the jails humanely. We look forward to working together to seek the relief necessary to end this culture of brutality.”

Adams said that if the court ultimately decides Rikers should fall under a receivership, his administration would “abide by the law,” but he then appealed to Williams for more time.

“I respect the U.S. Attorney in the Southern District,” Adams said. “I know that his goals are the same as mine.”