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Defense attorneys tell Council false refusals and multi‑hour waits block access to counsel at Rikers
Summary
Multiple public defenders testified that fabricated 'refusals' and multi‑hour waits routinely prevent timely attorney‑client meetings at Rikers; DOC said it is improving tracking and will pilot Visitor Express tracking for attorneys and expand confidential spaces.
Defense attorneys and public defenders told the joint New York City Council hearing on Dec. 4 that attorney access to incarcerated clients at Rikers Island is regularly obstructed by lengthy waits, inadequate confidential space and practices they described as false or fabricated refusals.
"This deliberate interference must end," said a defender summarizing repeated incidents in which correctional staff recorded a client as having "refused" a visit even though the client later told counsel that no such refusal occurred. Several lawyers described cases where a refusal slip appeared to have a signature the client later denied signing; one attorney said a client’s signature on a refusal form did not match a signature the client provided later.
DOC officials said the department notifies people in custody about attorney visits and that refusals are documented and, when applicable, captured on body‑worn camera. DOC told the committee it plans to use Visitor Express to better track attorney visits next year, and described interim steps including increased communication with facilities and pilot scheduling processes.
Council members and advocates urged immediate transparency: they asked DOC to start tracking pre‑registration waits, to provide time‑stamped logs of attorney arrival and client notification, and to expand confidential attorney meeting spaces in facilities where only one booth exists.
The council requested DOC follow up on timelines for implementing Visitor Express for attorneys, on expanding confidential spaces at the Rose M. Singer Center, RNDC and EMTC, and on data that would show how frequently attorney visits miss clients because a client allegedly 'refused.'
