Reuven Blau, Author at THE CITY

Detainees put makeshift decorations in their Rikers Island jail cell windows.

Rikers Detainees Denied Mental Health Care They Need to Stand Trial, Suit Says

by Reuven Blau Aug. 12, 2025, 8:58 p.m.Aug. 13, 2025, 10:34 a.m.

Legal Aid Society alleges city and state force hundreds with mental illness to wait months behind bars for psychiatric treatment they need in order to have their day in court.

Health

‘They’ve Gone Off the Map’: Fear Drives Immigrants Away From Clinics

by Reuven Blau Aug. 12, 2025, 5:00 a.m.Aug. 12, 2025, 4:54 p.m.

NYC Care enrollment declines for the first time, as doctors warn that New Yorkers worried about their immigration status are avoiding care out of deportation fears.

The Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women in Westchester, New York.

Incarceration

Suicides in NY Prisons More Than Doubled Last Year, New Data Shows

by Reuven Blau Aug. 5, 2025, 4:54 p.m.Aug. 5, 2025, 6:26 p.m.

The Correctional Association of New York on Tuesday unveiled a new dashboard detailing that the suicide rate at state lock ups spiked 108% last year.

Robert Brooks, who was murdered by a group of state correction officers in the Marcy Correctional Facility, posed for portrait with his son, Robert Jr.

Prisons

‘As If His Life Holds No Value’: Guard Sentenced in Beating Death of Robert Brooks

by Reuven Blau Aug. 4, 2025, 8:22 p.m.Aug. 4, 2025, 8:30 p.m.

Christopher Walrath is the first correction officer to be sentenced in the killing that shook New York’s prison system, captured on bodycams officers didn’t know were recording.

Criminal Justice

‘A Hot Mess’: Chaos Engulfs Probation Department Under Juanita Holmes

by Reuven Blau July 28, 2025, 5:05 a.m.July 27, 2025, 8:13 p.m.

On the eve of a City Council oversight hearing, critics say the department is in disarray, with commissioner’s NYPD-style approach alienating youth and veteran staff.

Prisons

‘Finally, Relief Is on Its Way’: NY to End Prison Phone Fees

by Reuven Blau July 22, 2025, 8:40 p.m.July 22, 2025, 8:41 p.m.

Once a crushing cost for families desperate to stay in touch with loved ones behind bars, phone calls will now be covered by the state.

Health-care workers walk across First Avenue outside Bellevue Hospital.

Jails

$241 Million Later, Brand-New Bellevue Hospital Jail Unit Sits Empty

by Reuven Blau July 21, 2025, 5:00 a.m.July 21, 2025, 7:41 a.m.

A 104-bed facility for seriously ill detainees is mostly finished but unopened — three years late and nearly double its original cost — because the Department of Correction says it lacks enough officers to secure it.

The family of Erick Tavira protested at City Hall his death on Rikers Island.

Jails

Council Set to Pass Bill Mandating Disclosure of Rikers Deaths

by Reuven Blau July 11, 2025, 5:13 p.m.July 11, 2025, 5:13 p.m.

Two years ago, Department of Correction officials abruptly stopped notifying the media when someone died in city custody. That sparked a wide backlash that culminates in legislation being voted on Monday

Prisons

From Convicted Killer to Magazine Writer: One Prisoner’s Bid for Mercy

by Reuven Blau July 10, 2025, 5:00 a.m.July 10, 2025, 3:23 p.m.

John J. Lennon, imprisoned for a brutal 2001 murder, is now a published writer in The New Yorker and The New York Times. Will his redemption be enough to earn clemency from Gov. Kathy Hochul?

Department of Correction

As Rikers Population Surges, Correction Department Bid to Add Beds Stalls

by Reuven Blau July 8, 2025, 7:10 p.m.July 8, 2025, 7:10 p.m.

Despite a growing number of detainees, the city’s jail oversight board rejected a request to expand dorm capacity — leaving officials scrambling for alternatives.

Reuven Blau

Rikers Detainees Denied Mental Health Care They Need to Stand Trial, Suit Says

‘They’ve Gone Off the Map’: Fear Drives Immigrants Away From Clinics

Suicides in NY Prisons More Than Doubled Last Year, New Data Shows

‘As If His Life Holds No Value’: Guard Sentenced in Beating Death of Robert Brooks

‘A Hot Mess’: Chaos Engulfs Probation Department Under Juanita Holmes

‘Finally, Relief Is on Its Way’: NY to End Prison Phone Fees

$241 Million Later, Brand-New Bellevue Hospital Jail Unit Sits Empty

Council Set to Pass Bill Mandating Disclosure of Rikers Deaths

From Convicted Killer to Magazine Writer: One Prisoner’s Bid for Mercy

As Rikers Population Surges, Correction Department Bid to Add Beds Stalls

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