Rikers Guards May Soon Wear Body Cameras

After several reports of widespread brutality and corruption at Rikers Island, New York City officials tentatively agreed to sweeping reforms that would introduce body cameras for its prison guards, bring in a federal monitor to oversee the facility, and establish explicit rules against hitting prisoners in the head. Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration, the office of the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, and the Legal Aid Society joined a class-action lawsuit filed in 2011 against the city over prison abuses. The measures are part of a settlement in the case. No final deal has been reached but, as of two weeks ago, a final agreement was expected by June 22.