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Mayor Eric Adams has issued an emergency order that temporarily suspends aspects of New York City’s new law restricting solitary confinement in jails. This order permits the continuation of solitary confinement beyond the previously mandated four-hour limit and allows the use of restraints during the transport of inmates.

What’s the deal: Mayor Eric Adams has suspended “Local Law 42” due to safety concerns for both staff and detainees in city jails. He argues that the law’s restrictions—specifically, the four-hour limit on de-escalation confinement and the ban on restraints during transport—could jeopardize the safety of those working and held in city jails.

Digging Deeper: Without the Mayor’s intervention, the new law would have imposed key restrictions: it would have limited de-escalation confinement for inmates posing immediate safety risks to just four hours, banned the use of restraints during transport, and capped restrictive housing to 60 days within a 12-month period, with mandatory reviews every 15 days. The City Council argued that these measures were designed to mitigate the harmful psychological effects of solitary confinement, reduce the risk of suicide and violence, and enhance the overall treatment of inmates in New York City jails.

Who passed this law?: The New York City Council passed the law after receiving support from all council members. Although Mayor Eric Adams vetoed the legislation, the Council successfully overrode his veto in January, leading to the law’s implementation.

Here are two different views:
Support:  In a statement, Correction Officers Benevolent Association President Benny Boscio said, “We thank Mayor Adams for implementing this critical Executive Order and we will continue to fight vigorously to repeal this dangerous legislation altogether. It’s shocking that as the daughter of a former Correction Officer, Speaker Adams would spearhead this legislation that would have jeopardized the life of her own mother if this was passed when she was an officer.”

Opposition: Jumaane Williams, who helped introduce the legislation, said, “This is a shameful tactic, another desperate abuse of power by this administration to try and ignore laws it opposes. Misusing a ‘state of emergency’ is dangerous, especially from a mayor who claims to care about public safety. Now, the Mayor wants to throw out yet another law of our city in order to maintain a status quo that threatens people on both sides of the bars. At the last possible moment, he is declaring an ’emergency’ without public notification or legitimate justification. It is inexcusable, and we will explore all means of ensuring that this administration cannot continue to abandon its duty to execute the law the Council overwhelmingly approved twice.”