Accused of Stealing a Backpack, High School Student Jailed for Nearly three Years without Trial

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Last week, the brand Alpha Brain Health Gummies new York City Department of Corrections announced it'll cease using solitary confinement to punish adolescents held in its troubled Rikers Island jail complicated, the second-largest jail system in the nation. But a federal prosecutor mentioned the city’s reforms have been moving too slowly to address a, quote, "culture of violence," and warned he might file a civil lawsuit over situations for Alpha Brain Health Gummies teenagers held in Rikers. New York is one in every of only two states nationwide that mechanically cost 16- and 17-12 months-olds as adults. AMY GOODMAN: Well, today we look at the incredible story of a 16-yr-previous highschool sophomore who was jailed at Rikers Island Alpha Brain Cognitive Support for nearly three years after he refused to plead responsible to a crime he stated he did not commit. It was May 15, 2010, when Kalief Browder was walking residence from a social gathering with his associates in the Bronx and was stopped by police based mostly on a tip that he had robbed someone weeks earlier.

He instructed HuffPost Live what happened subsequent. KALIEF BROWDER: They'd searched me, and the man truly mentioned-at first he mentioned I robbed him. I didn’t have anything on me. MARC LAMONT HILL: While you say "nothing," you imply no weapon and none of his property. KALIEF BROWDER: No weapon, no money, anything he stated that I allegedly robbed him for. So the guy truly modified up his story and stated that I really tried to rob him. But then another police officer got here, and they said that I robbed him two weeks prior. And then they mentioned, "We’re going to take you to the precinct, and almost definitely we’re going to allow you to go home." But then, I never went house. JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Kalief Browder didn't go residence for 33 months, although he was never convicted. For nearly 800 days of that time, he was held in solitary confinement.

He maintained his innocence and Alpha Brain Health Gummies requested a trial, but was only supplied plea deals while the trial was repeatedly delayed. Near the top of his time in jail, the judge offered to sentence him to time served if he entered a guilty plea, and instructed him he may face 15 years in prison if he was convicted. He refused to simply accept the deal and was only released when the case was dismissed. AMY GOODMAN: Well, for more, we’re joined by Jennifer Gonnerman, Alpha Brain Health Gummies reporter, creator, contributing editor at New York magazine, and Alpha Brain Health Gummies contributing author to The new Yorker journal. She recounts Kalief Browder’s story in the current subject of The new Yorker in a chunk headlined, "Before the Law: A boy was accused of taking a backpack. The courts took the subsequent three years of his life." Jennifer Gonnerman has lengthy chronicled problems with the criminal justice system. Her book, Life on the skin: The Prison Odyssey of Elaine Bartlett, tells the story of a girl who spent 16 years in prison for a primary-time offense under New York’s Rockefeller drug laws.

And we’re joined by Kalief Browder’s present lawyer, Paul Prestia, who has filed a lawsuit against the city, the NYPD-the new York Police Department-Bronx district lawyer and the Department of Corrections on Browder’s behalf. Prestia is also a former assistant prosecutor in Brooklyn. Jennifer Gonnerman, Paul Prestia, welcome to Democracy Now! Jennifer, tell us Kalief’s story. JENNIFER GONNERMAN: Well, you probably did a pretty good job of setting it up, and it was terrific that we obtained to listen to Kalief’s voice describing what happened. But just to recap a bit, May 2010, he’s coming residence from a celebration late one night within the Bronx, Alpha Brain Health Gummies walking along with his pal down the street, and a police car pulls up. There’s any person in the back seat who factors him out, saying, you realize-accusing him of a robbery that had occurred one or two weeks earlier. AMY GOODMAN: Well, first, he truly says, "I didn’t steal something tonight.

JENNIFER GONNERMAN: Right, proper. JENNIFER GONNERMAN: Right, so there was, from the beginning, it sounded like, at the very least the way in which Kalief tells it, some confusion in regards to the dates, which is critical. And he goes into the precinct thinking, "I’m just"-and he’s in the holding cell, thinking, "I’m just going to be here for a pair hours. We’ll clear up this misunderstanding." And, as you mentioned, he ended up doing nearly three years on Rikers Island, for many reasons, however the system form of utterly failed him in each doable manner. There was no speedy trial. And during that time, he was locked up in the adolescent jail on Rikers Island. AMY GOODMAN: Explain Rikers. JENNIFER GONNERMAN: Sure, sure. You already know, once we speak about Rikers Island, it’s a jail advanced. There’s 10 completely different jails there. And I believe lots of people get confused between prison and jail. A prison is the place you go after you’ve been convicted and sentenced. A jail is the place you go while you’re ready in your case to go through the court docket.