Kalief Browder
Kalief Browder was 16 when he was held at Rikers Island awaiting trial, and he spent about three years there, much of it in solitary confinement, before his case was dismissed and he was released in 2013. His family said the violence and psychological harm he suffered at Rikers contributed to his death by suicide in June 2015 at age 22, at his family's home in the Bronx. His family filed a wrongful death suit against New York City, and the city agreed in January 2019 to pay $3.3 million to his estate without admitting wrongdoing. Sources also say he had enrolled at Bronx Community College and hoped to finish school and run his own business.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (disputed; neglect alleged). Family members say the violence and psychological damage he suffered at Rikers Island contributed to his suicide, and his family's wrongful death lawsuit says the city's treatment of him led to his death, while an article reports officers allegedly urged him to jump during an attempt that officers' reports did not mention.
Reported by: family members; Venida and Everett Browder (family or their lawyers); attorney Paul Prestia (family or their lawyers); Browder family, through a wrongful death lawsuit against New York City (family or their lawyers); advocates for criminal justice reform; New York City Law Department (the agency that held him).
Lawsuit: His family sued New York City in a wrongful death suit, and the city settled in January 2019 for $3.3 million without admitting wrongdoing.
Sources (8)
- Kalief Browder, held for years as a teen in Rikers Island without conviction, dies at age 22
- Kalief Browder Was In Jail Because He Couldn't Pay $3,000
- Family Of Man Who Killed Himself After Stay At Rikers Plans Wrongful Death Suit Against NYC
- Kalief Browder Learned How to Commit Suicide on Rikers
- Family of Kalief Browder, who killed himself after jail, gets $3.3M from NY
- Kalief Browder lawsuit: New York City to pay $3 million to family of man who killed himself after Rikers confinement
- Kalief Browder Deserved Better From New York City
- Pretrial Deaths in Custody Are Prevalent but Preventable