Rikers is a pretrial detention center and while people await their day in court, the conditions at the island are simply inhumane due to violence, overcrowding and inadequate medical care. Rikers is scheduled to close in 2027 but at the rate we're going, eighty more people might die on the island before the jail is shut down. How do we untangle this culture of perpetual violence at Rikers? And could an intervention called a federal receivership make conditions more humane for the people who live there? Host Travon Free uncovers why a receivership might be the only solution that could actually make things better for people right now. 

The Untold Story is a Lemonada Media original and is presented by Campaign Zero. This episode is produced by Nicolle Galteland with production help from Hannah Boomershine and Priscilla Alabi. Supervising producer is Kristen Lepore. Production intern is Jala Everett. Fact checking by Steve Crighton. Music, sound design and mixing by Hannis Brown. Engineering from Andrea Kristinsdottir. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer, Stephanie Wittels Wachs, DeRay Mckesson and Jay Ellis. You can find host Travon Free on Instagram and Twitter: @Travon. 

Resources:
The Rikers in Crisis Campaign
The New York Times: Tracking the Deaths in New York City’s Jail System in 2022
The Brennan Center: Receiverships for Jails and Prisons, Explained, The Way Forward for Rikers Island: Receivership
The Fortune Society: At pivotal time for Rikers, experts say federal control is best path forward
The Columbia Justice Lab: Pros and Cons of Receiverships as a Catalyst for Institutional Reform
Vital City: The Fatal Cost of Waiting: What Must Happen Now in the City’s Jails
WNYC/ Gothamist: Correction commissioner absent from oversight hearing as Rikers Island violence escalates
Just leadership USA
The Close Rikers Campaign
The Legal Aid Society 

Rikers is a pretrial detention center and while people await their day in court, the conditions at the island are simply inhumane due to violence, overcrowding and inadequate medical care. Rikers is scheduled to close in 2027 but at the rate we're going, eighty more people might die on the island before the jail is shut down. How do we untangle this culture of perpetual violence at Rikers? And could an intervention called a federal receivership make conditions more humane for the people who live there? Host Travon Free uncovers why a receivership might be the only solution that could actually make things better for people right now. 
The Untold Story is a Lemonada Media original and is presented by Campaign Zero. This episode is produced by Nicolle Galteland with production help from Hannah Boomershine and Priscilla Alabi. Supervising producer is Kristen Lepore. Production intern is Jala Everett. Fact checking by Steve Crighton. Music, sound design and mixing by Hannis Brown. Engineering from Andrea Kristinsdottir. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer, Stephanie Wittels Wachs, DeRay Mckesson and Jay Ellis. You can find host Travon Free on Instagram and Twitter: @Travon. 
Resources:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://rikersisland.org/">The Rikers in Crisis Campaign</a></li>
<li>The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/rikers-deaths-jail.html#:~:text=Sixteen%20people%20had%20died%20by,held%20in%20the%20jail%20system.">Tracking the Deaths in New York City’s Jail System in 2022</a></li>
<li>The Brennan Center: <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/receiverships-jails-and-prisons-explained">Receiverships for Jails and Prisons, Explained</a>, <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/way-forward-rikers-island-receivership">The Way Forward for Rikers Island: Receivership</a></li>
<li>The Fortune Society:<a href="https://fortunesociety.org/media_center/at-pivotal-time-for-rikers-experts-say-federal-control-is-best-path-forward/"> At pivotal time for Rikers, experts say federal control is best path forward</a></li>
<li>The Columbia Justice Lab: <a href="https://justicelab.columbia.edu/news/Pros-Cons-Receiverships">Pros and Cons of Receiverships as a Catalyst for Institutional Reform</a></li>
<li>Vital City: <a href="https://www.vitalcitynyc.org/articles/liz-glazer-nyc-jails-fatal-cost-of-waiting">The Fatal Cost of Waiting: What Must Happen Now in the City’s Jails</a></li>
<li>WNYC/ Gothamist: <a href="https://gothamist.com/news/correction-commissioner-absent-from-oversight-hearing-as-rikers-island-violence-escalates">Correction commissioner absent from oversight hearing as Rikers Island violence escalates</a></li>
<li><a href="https://jlusa.org/">Just leadership USA</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.campaigntocloserikers.org/news-resources">The Close Rikers Campaign</a></li>
<li><a href="https://legalaidnyc.org/">The Legal Aid Society </a></li>
</ul>

On seasons 1 and 2, we took a deep look into policing and criminal justice in America. This season on The Untold Story, we go even further, with three investigations of injustice happening in your own backyard. From executive producer Jay Ellis and Lemonada Media, this season covers how we can fix the humanitarian crisis happening at Rikers Island; why your tax dollars are funding software that leads to over policing in our most vulnerable communities; and the racist roots of the debunked medical term excited delirium. Host Travon Free talks to real people who have experienced the effects first-hand, as well as lawyers, organizers, and city officials who are all part of the effort to answer the question: How can we hold our most powerful institutions accountable?

On seasons 1 and 2, we took a deep look into policing and criminal justice in America. This season on The Untold Story, we go even further, with three investigations of injustice happening in your own backyard. From executive producer Jay Ellis and Lemonada Media, this season covers how we can fix the humanitarian crisis happening at Rikers Island; why your tax dollars are funding software that leads to over policing in our most vulnerable communities; and the racist roots of the debunked medical term excited delirium. Host Travon Free talks to real people who have experienced the effects first-hand, as well as lawyers, organizers, and city officials who are all part of the effort to answer the question: How can we hold our most powerful institutions accountable?

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