Video footage shows a Rikers Island inmate brawling with a guard, and it appears that nobody came to help the officer.
The footage from the New York Department of Corrections shows the inmate punching the guard before taking him to the ground and attacking him. At one point, the inmate throws a trash can at the corrections officer.
“This video and others like it are another reminder of why the officer to inmate ratio in the NYC DOC needs to change,” he said.
It’s not clear why officers in the area didn’t rush to help Jean-Philippe.
“We are using every tool possible to help officers do their jobs in a secure environment,” Correction Department spokesman Jason Kersten told the Daily News. “Thankfully, our officer was not seriously injured.”
“Building four new jails is not going to reduce violence as long as correction officers remain outnumbered and without the tools they need to maintain law and order,” added Husamudeen. He noted that the department should “lower the inmate-to-officer ratio units inside the jails, even while hiring more correction officers.”
According to the Daily News, Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration has struggled to curb violence in city jails despite having a larger budget.
The New York Department of Corrections said the incident occurred “weeks ago,” but it didn’t specify the details of the incident, including injuries.
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