Adams administration asks federal judge to lift ban on solitary confinement in New York prisons

The Adams administration has asked a judge to stay enforcement of the ban on solitary confinement in New York City’s prisons until the federal official in charge of overseeing the facilities can provide his opinion.

A lawyer with the city’s law department filed the motion in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday, months after the City Council overrode Mayor Eric Adams’ veto of the ban.

“Most of the requirements” of the individual ban “contradict” previous orders in the federal oversight case, attorney Sheryl Neufeld wrote to Judge Laura Taylor Swain.

Although federal commissioner Steven Martin criticized the solitary confinement ban after it passed, it is unclear whether Swain has the authority to suspend the law, which is set to take effect on July 28.

Adams vetoed the ban in January, saying the measure meant “the Department of Corrections would no longer be able to protect inmates or the union employees responsible for their safety from violent individuals.”

The mayor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

His administration’s call to suspend the solitary confinement ban is the latest move in a series of heated exchanges between the mayor and Democratic council members.

Council Speaker Adrienne Adams’ office declined to comment Tuesday.

“We cannot allow the human rights and safety crisis on Rikers to continue by maintaining the status quo of failed policies and practices,” the speaker, a Queens Democrat, said in January. “This bill has broad support and promotes a new approach to reducing violence and prioritizing safety.”

Since 2015, the city’s troubled prison system has had a federal overseer tasked with monitoring conditions and pushing for reforms.

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