At age 16, Kalief Browder was arrested and imprisoned at the infamous Rikers Island. After 33 months without trial or conviction, Browder was released and is now speaking out.
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This post originally appeared at Think Progress.
By Nicole Flatow
A teen who spent three years in a notorious New York jail without ever having been convicted or put on trial is coming forward after filing a lawsuit against New York City. In June, charges against Kalief Browder were mysteriously dropped and he was released, as first reported by WABC-TV.
Browder was a 16-year-old sophomore in high school walking home from a party in the Bronx when he was arrested on a tip that he robbed someone three weeks earlier. He was hauled off to Rikers Island, a prison known for punishing conditions and overuse of force, and was held because he couldn’t pay the $10,000 bail. Browder went to court on several occasions, but he was never scheduled for trial. After 33 months in jail, Browder said a judge offered freedom in exchange for a guilty plea, threatening that he could face 15 years in jail if convicted. He refused. Then one day, he was released with no explanation.
“They just dismissed the case and they think it’s all right. No apology, no nothing,” he told WABC-TV. Now at age 20 with his teen years behind him, Browder is first faced with finishing his GED and trying to make up for three years of his teen years lost.
Browder says he spent more than 400 days in solitary confinement, was deprived of meals, and was assaulted and beaten both by officers and fellow inmates. Browder attempted suicide at least six times. Last month he filed a lawsuit last month against the city and several agencies. The Bronx District Attorney’s office has declined to comment.
Browder’s story lays out a laundry list of some of the most prevalent problems with the criminal justice system. Browder was stopped in the Bronx, where the New York Police Department came under particular fire for its over-aggressive use of stops and unsubstantiated charges of “trespassing.” He was purportedly jailed based solely on one report to police, reinforcing race disparities in the criminal justice system. He was held in jail pursuant to bail policies that routinely punish the impoverished. And he was held in solitary confinement as a juvenile, even though the draconian punishment has particularly detrimental long-term effects on youths.
An internal review recently obtained by the Associated Press finds a spike in use of both solitary confinement and force by staff at Rikers Island.
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Photo: AP/Seth Wenig
@Tom Hey man,you got me to thinking about something.Your right brother in that my use of white people as a method of defining a group by its beliefs isn’t accurate.The real issue is about culture.You know,the values and mores one identifies as their own, not skin color.Thanks. As a practical matter,I still contend that people of the dominant culture,who collectively hold most of the power,should spearhead the next phase of the CR movement.The dominant culture has,only through externally driven and persistant agitations, ever tried to make good on the promises of its’ creed. The dominant culture says freedom and equality… Read more »
@Tom Hey man,you got me to thinking about something.Your right brother in that my use of white people isn’t accurate.The real issue is about culture,you know,the values and mores one identifies as their own, not skin color.Thanks.
@Tom I named white people because they have more leverage and power to create change than do black people.Come on man, we-black people-shot our wad in the sixities and have yet to regain full strength since the deaths of MLK,John,his brother Bobby and Malcolm.Besides,a CR backlash has been in effect for 40 years and sympathy for “black issues” is in short supply.Many of the responses I read on GMP from men confirm this fact. They say:get over it,or its not that bad,or slavery happened a long time ago,or my favorite,black people have more rights than white people.They don’t realize that… Read more »
You and I know that he is more then likely one of many. And where is the “laundry list?” I have a laundry list but a list without cleaning the laundry is still no more then a list. Have to be honest though, not sure why you identified white people, it should piss off a LOT of people of all races. The system as a whole is screwed up. Chicago has its share of jail/prison issues. My understanding is that he’s suing for 20 million. IMO, not enough, I want some balls cut off. Should also go after the guy… Read more »
I hope he wins a $1,000,000,000 settlement,which get mammoth attention and will piss off a bunch of white people.Perhaps then they will get off their duffs,take some responsibility ,and, once and for all, change this evil system.