Another Detainee Dies In NYC Custody, Correction Department Says

NEW YORK — A detainee died in the custody of New York City's jail agency two days after a woman's death in a Rikers Island lockup, officials said.

The latest prisoner died just before 8 p.m. Sunday at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan while in the Department of Correction's custody, the department said. The agency is waiting to identify the person until their next of kin is notified.

The death came two days after Layleen Polanco, a 27-year-old transgender woman, was found dead in her cell in the Rose M. Singer Center jail on Rikers Island.

The unnamed detainee, who had been in DOC custody since last month, was admitted to Bellevue five days before dying because they had complicated medical needs, officials said.

The city's Office of Chief Medical Examiner will determine the person's cause of death. The detainee had no physical injuries, said Aja Worthy-Davis, a spokeswoman for the office.

"The death of any person in our custody is a tragic loss," Peter Thorne, the DOC's deputy commissioner of public information, said in a statement. "The detainee was housed in a medical setting since entering our custody last month."

While the city's jails have struggled with the use of force by guards, deaths in DOC custody are rare. The department reported one unnatural death of an inmate in its custody in the 2018 fiscal year and one other such death in the first four months of the 2019 fiscal year, according to the most recent Mayor's Management Report.