Legal Aid Society calls for investigation into NYPD arrest practices after two people died in courthouse jails

The Legal Aid Society is demanding an investigation into the NYPD for arresting suspects involved in what they cite as low-level offenses instead of issuing desk appearance tickets after two people died while awaiting arraignment behind bars.

The appeal came in a letter the Legal Aid Society sent to the city’s Department of Investigation, in which they called for an immediate inquiry into recent arrests that the group says they believe have violated the law. According to the Legal Aid Society, Criminal Procedure Law states that, with limited exceptions, police officers must issue appearance tickets rather than arrest individuals suspected of committing violations, infractions, misdemeanors, and certain class E felonies.

This comes as two men died while awaiting arraignment last month.

On March 21, 32-year-old Soso Ramishvili was found unconscious and unresponsive inside a holding cell of the courthouse at 120 Schermerhorn St. in Downtown Brooklyn at about 8:25 a.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Five days later, on March 26, a 43-year-old man was found unconscious and unresponsive inside a Manhattan holding cell at 100 Centre St. at around 8 a.m. EMS rushed him to NewYork-Presbyterian-Lower Manhattan Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The law group also charged that the NYPD has significantly increased the number of these low-level arrests, pointing out that in the first two months of this year, 75% of people have been detained for petit larceny compared to 45% in 2021.

“The NYPD’s continued disregard for State law has already resulted in the endangerment of the people we serve, forcing them to needlessly languish in custody due to officers’ refusal to comply with an established mandate,” Meghna Philip, the director of the Special Litigation Unit at The Legal Aid Society. “No New Yorker should be subjected to the myriad health and safety risks – including death – posed by detention. We demand an immediate and thorough investigation into the NYPD’s dangerous arrest and detention practices and urge DOI to hold the NYPD accountable for any noncompliance with the law.”

Police sources pushed back, telling amNewYork that Ramishvili, who was arrested for stealing power tools, brought Ramishvili to the hospital multiple times over a three-day period. Still, medical staff ultimately released him back into their custody each time. Cops also say that both men had warrants for their arrests, which is why they were being held.

The Legal Aid Society also states that the wait time to see a judge is getting longer as the number of those arrested increases. They say while Ramishvili was being held, 237 other individuals likewise waited over 24 hours in Brooklyn to see a judge for arraignment.

“It is clear the NYPD is using a slim exception to the appearance ticket mandate as cover for its aggressive targeting, arrest, and detention of vulnerable, low-income New Yorkers,” the Legal Aid Society said in a statement.