The city’s Board of Correction (BOC) is unveiling a proposal that the de Blasio administration says would finally end solitary confinement in New York City jails.
The proposal, which will be announced at the BOC’s public meeting March 9, calls to end solitary confinement by November 1 and replace it with a so-called Risk Management Accountability Plan, which would allow for at least 10 hours per day outside of a cell, five hours of “daily programming,” access to case management services, individualized behavioral support plans, and occasional reviews by a multidisciplinary team, according to a joint announcement by the mayor and the BOC.
The announcement comes at a time when the city has faced increased pressure to do away with solitary confinement — especially in light of the 2019 death of Layleen Xtravaganza Cubilette-Polanco, a transgender woman who was neglected by guards at Rikers who left her alone while she suffered a fatal health emergency in her “restrictive housing” cell, which is a form of solitary confinement.
