At The Legal Aid Society our Civil, Criminal Defense, Juvenile Rights, and Pro Bono practices work tirelessly in and out of the courtroom to defend our clients and dismantle the hidden, systemic barriers that can prevent them from thriving in New York City. We seek to be a beacon of hope for those who feel neglected —regardless of who they are, where they come from, or how they identify. Our experienced teams provide comprehensive services, support, and advocacy that protect rights, keep families and communities together, and in many cases, saves lives. We have an intrinsic connection to the daily lives of New Yorkers. Here are a few of the places we made a difference, provided context or added valuable perspective this week:

Crisis on Rikers: Court issues emergency order, LAS continues call to decarcerate

Queens Daily Eagle: Judge orders city to take action on Rikers
Daily Mail: Conditions at Rikers are ‘so bad’ that DA Vance is telling prosecutors to not ask for bail
Gothamist: Staff Shortages Leave 20% Of Rikers Detainees Under Quarantine
Economist: The jail on Rikers Island is both appalling and generously funded
Spectrum News: NY Sen. Gianaris urges Hochul to speed up parole changes
El Diario: Ordenan extensión de audiencias judiciales vía remoto en NY
Pix11: Rikers crisis: Federal judge orders sweeping changes at beleaguered city jails
Brian Lehrer Show: Rikers in Crisis: A Rare Visit From the Mayor, What Role Judges Play
The Intercept: Judge Tried To Send Homeless Man Accused Of Stealing Blankets To Rikers
Queens Daily Eagle: Mayor de Blasio goes to Rikers
Gothamist: Public Defenders, Activists Call On Judges To Address Mounting Rikers Death Toll
NY Daily News: Hundreds at NYC courts protest ‘life threatening’ conditions on Rikers
Queens Daily Eagle: Queens lawyers walk out to condemn Rikers conditions
NY Mag: ‘It’s Hard to Find the Words to Describe How Bad It Is Right Now’
NYDN: New law could have kept parole violator from being sent to Rikers Island
Politico: Things were looking up for Bill de Blasio. Then crises started piling up.
Patch: After NYC Jail Officials Ignored Suicide Prevention Plan, Five Detainees Took Their Own Lives
NYDN: 200 Rikers inmates moved to upstate NY prisons to spare them from horrible jail conditions
AP: Congress, court pressure New York City to fix jails crisis
NYT: Members of Congress Urge Biden to Intervene at Rikers as de Blasio Plans Visit
NYLJ: Lawyers to Push for Inmates’ Release Amid Deepening Crisis at Rikers Island
Newsweek: Judge Says Rikers Island in ‘State of Danger’ as Congress Pushes for Investigation
NYDN: Our jail hell: Rikers Island is an abomination Mayor de Blasio’s proven incapable of fixing
NY1: Federal monitor says Rikers Island is in state of emergency
NYDN: Guards nearly missed saving life of Rikers inmate in suicide try
NY Post: Rikers ‘emergency’ needs outside expertise to replace city mismanagement

More LAS in the news 

NYLJ: Former NYC Corporation Counsel Zachary Carter Elected Legal Aid Board Chair
NYDN: Homeless NYC veterans moving to new shelter with more privacy after Daily News report
NYT: Dasani Showed Us What It’s Like to Grow Up Homeless. She’s Still Struggling.
NYDN: Homeless NYC veterans moved out of hotels and into cubicles in Queens shelter
NBC News: Police departments across U.S. are mandating LGBTQ training
CBS 2: Mattress Giveaway Highlights Depth Of Need That Remains 3 Weeks After Ida
NYT: When Dasani Left Home