What to Know About a Possible Federal Takeover of Rikers Island

New York City could lose control over its jails after a federal judge on Wednesday said that it had failed to improve conditions at the notoriously dangerous Rikers Island complex.

The judge, Laura Taylor Swain, found the city in contempt of a 2015 agreement to stem abuse and violence in the jails, and said that she was “inclined” to wrest control from the city and install a receiver, an independent figure with the authority to reform the system.

Rikers Island has long been the subject of scrutiny over safety issues. In the last two years, dozens of people have died while in the city’s custody or shortly after leaving it.

Here’s what a receivership could mean for jails in New York.

What is a receiver?

A receiver is an independent authority appointed by a court to temporarily run a failing institution. In New York, the receiver would have control over all or some parts of the city’s jails. Once conditions improve enough to meet the court’s standards, the receiver would return control to the city.

Receiverships are among the most drastic legal tools at a court’s disposal. Once appointed, receivers typically have power to make sweeping changes. Often, they negotiate contracts, change how money is allocated and make staffing decisions. Exactly what a receiver is empowered to do is determined by a judge.

Receivers in public institutions are relatively rare. Only a dozen jail and prison systems have come under receivership in United States history, according to the Brennan Center for Justice, a law and policy institute. Each receivership is unique, and courts have significant latitude in deciding the parameters of the arrangement.