Double Bunking is Dangerous, Unnecessary and Should Stop - Pass A930/S1334

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Double Bunking is Dangerous, Unnecessary and Should Stop - Pass A930/S1334

Governor Cuomo, Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins, Speaker Heastie, Senator Sepúlveda, Assembly-member Weprin

When New York was facing a prison overcrowding crisis in the 1980s and 1990s, every place that could house an inmate was under consideration. One of the quickest solutions is one we are still dealing with right now - housing more inmates in a space than it was originally designed to hold. The practice, and consequences, of double bunking continues to this day even though it is no longer needed.

An increase in the number of inmates in a facility, especially above the number envisioned when it was built, presents very significant challenges to corrections officers and their ability to keep themselves and the inmates in the facility safe. Today, New York has more than enough empty beds that this double bunking practice could be ended in a safe and cost-effective manner.

Please add your name to the below petition in support of this bill being passed out of Committee and signed into law by Governor Cuomo.

Sponsored by

Safer Prisons New York

Albany, NY

To: Governor Cuomo, Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins, Speaker Heastie, Senator Sepúlveda, Assembly-member Weprin
From: [Your Name]

The strides New York has made in criminal justice reform have made us a leader for tackling this critical issue. But we continue to house inmates in rooms and facilities that were not designed to hold that number, unnecessarily creating dangerous and volatile stations. This has resulted in violence, even deaths, and with unintended costs and consequences that go against the values we hold as New Yorkers.

Ensuring the safety and security of both inmates and corrections officers within our correctional facilities is the underpinning that enables all other programming and rehabilitation to be successful.

That is why passage of A930 and S1334 is so important. The vast majority of inmates want to do the right thing - serve their time, take advantage of job training and rehabilitation programs and return to society. And corrections staff deserve the right to go to work and return home safely. But double bunking puts everyone at greater risk of conflict and violence each and every day.