New York City Public Defenders Applaud Court Decision Upholding the Ban on Solitary Confinement and Commend City Council’s Swift Action to Defend the Law

(New York, NY) — The Bronx Defenders, Brooklyn Defender Services, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, and New York County Defender Services— represented by pro bono counsel Selendy Gay PLLC — commend Monday’s New York State Supreme Court’s decision affirming the City Council’s authority to pass and implement Local Law 42 of 2024 (LL42), which bans solitary confinement in New York City jails.

The four defender offices issued the following joint statement:

“Monday’s ruling is a victory for the thousands of New Yorkers incarcerated in our city’s jails, whose safety and dignity the Council fought to protect. When the Mayor attempted to unilaterally block this lifesaving law through emergency executive order, the Council acted quickly and courageously — and now the Court has confirmed that the Mayor’s attempt to suspend LL42 via repeated ‘emergency’ Executive Orders was not only unprecedented, it was unlawful. 

“As we demonstrated in our amicus brief: solitary confinement causes lasting trauma, inflicts needless suffering, and further destabilizes DOC’s already chaotic and violent jails. The people we represent have felt this abuse firsthand. Every day, they endure dehumanizing conditions on Rikers Island that LL42 was designed to ameliorate by ending solitary confinement and providing due process protections. 

“We are grateful to the City Council and Public Advocate for standing firm in their commitment to protecting the lives and rights of people in city custody. Their leadership, and the Court’s decision upholding the rule of law, are critical steps toward ending torture in our jails and building a more humane and accountable system.”

The four defender offices were represented on the amicus brief by Corey Stoughton, Drake Reed, and Danny Shokry of the law firm Selendy Gay PLLC.

###