Mayor Pledges Rikers Visit As Dems Call For Biden To Intervene

NEW YORK CITY — Mayor Bill de Blasio caved to political pressure to visit Rikers Island and witness the troubled jail's deteriorating conditions firsthand.

But de Blasio's planned visit next week could come as too little, too late.

Eight New York congressional representatives sent a blistering letter Friday to President Joe Biden calling for immediate federal intervention and a civil rights investigation. The letter first reported by NY1 cast doubt that de Blasio can alleviate a "humanitarian" crisis.

"While New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has recently announced a five-point 'Emergency Relief Rikers Plan' to address these inhumane conditions, the plan as proposed does not provide the urgent and immediate intervention required to deescalate a very real crisis," the letter states.

The letter's release Friday coincided with de Blasio telling WNYC's Brian Lehrer that he planned to visit Rikers for the first time since 2017. Several elected officials have visited the jail in recent weeks, and all have recounted awful conditions, including overcrowding, days-long stays for inmates in intake areas and suicide attempts.

But de Blasio resisted their calls to visit and see for himself. He came under increased fire after he found time to meet Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at One World Trade Center.

The mayor brushed aside those criticisms.

"Some people honestly, bluntly are heavy on the symbolism," he said. "That's great, I get it. My approach for better or worse is I want to solve the problem and that took a lot of time and energy, but we are getting the changes we need."