NYC DOC Under Fire for Handling of Sexual Assault Claims Amid Rikers Officer's Conviction
A lawyer representing multiple women who claim to have been sexually assaulted by a corrections officer at Rikers Island is calling for a review of the Department of Corrections' (DOC) policies in handling civil sexual assault claims. The request comes after the conviction of CO Martin Jr., who was accused by several former inmates, including Karina Collado, of multiple acts of sexual abuse.
Collado's lawsuit, filed in May 2023, alleged that Martin Jr. assaulted her while she was detained at Rikers Island about three years prior to the filing of the lawsuit. Despite this, the DOC did not suspend Martin Jr. or investigate the allegations until a year later, when he was arrested by the NYPD on new charges. The jury ultimately convicted him of sexual abuse in the latest case but acquitted him of two rape counts.
The lawyer, Anna Kull, argues that the DOC should have taken action sooner to prevent potential harm to women like Collado, who may have been deterred from coming forward if officials had investigated her claims more promptly. "I think this demonstrates that there was not a priority of maintaining safety of currently incarcerated women perhaps because the allegations by formerly incarcerated women were not taken seriously," Kull said.
The DOC has faced criticism in recent months over its handling of sexual assault cases at Rikers Island, with an investigation by Gothamist revealing that 60% of the cases filed in New York City's state supreme court dealt with a pattern of alleged sexual abuse dating back decades. The Adult Survivors' Act, passed in 2022, allowed for a one-year window for people to sue for sexual assaults that would otherwise have been barred by statute of limitations.
In response to Martin Jr.'s conviction and the growing number of lawsuits filed against him, DOC Commissioner Lynelle Maginley-Liddie has announced that Martin Jr. will be fired from his position. However, Kull's call for a review of the DOC's policies highlights ongoing concerns about the agency's ability to protect the safety of its female inmates.
A lawyer representing multiple women who claim to have been sexually assaulted by a corrections officer at Rikers Island is calling for a review of the Department of Corrections' (DOC) policies in handling civil sexual assault claims. The request comes after the conviction of CO Martin Jr., who was accused by several former inmates, including Karina Collado, of multiple acts of sexual abuse.
Collado's lawsuit, filed in May 2023, alleged that Martin Jr. assaulted her while she was detained at Rikers Island about three years prior to the filing of the lawsuit. Despite this, the DOC did not suspend Martin Jr. or investigate the allegations until a year later, when he was arrested by the NYPD on new charges. The jury ultimately convicted him of sexual abuse in the latest case but acquitted him of two rape counts.
The lawyer, Anna Kull, argues that the DOC should have taken action sooner to prevent potential harm to women like Collado, who may have been deterred from coming forward if officials had investigated her claims more promptly. "I think this demonstrates that there was not a priority of maintaining safety of currently incarcerated women perhaps because the allegations by formerly incarcerated women were not taken seriously," Kull said.
The DOC has faced criticism in recent months over its handling of sexual assault cases at Rikers Island, with an investigation by Gothamist revealing that 60% of the cases filed in New York City's state supreme court dealt with a pattern of alleged sexual abuse dating back decades. The Adult Survivors' Act, passed in 2022, allowed for a one-year window for people to sue for sexual assaults that would otherwise have been barred by statute of limitations.
In response to Martin Jr.'s conviction and the growing number of lawsuits filed against him, DOC Commissioner Lynelle Maginley-Liddie has announced that Martin Jr. will be fired from his position. However, Kull's call for a review of the DOC's policies highlights ongoing concerns about the agency's ability to protect the safety of its female inmates.
. I mean, come on, Rikers Island has been notorious for its lack of care and attention towards the women in their custody, but you'd think they'd have a system in place to actually take action when someone comes forward with allegations. I'm not surprised that it took so long for Martin Jr.'s case to get investigated, or that there are more lawsuits against him than we thought... it just goes to show that the DOC isn't taking these claims seriously.
its really sad what's been going on at Rikers Island, especially with all these women coming forward and no one taking action sooner 
. I think the DOC needs to seriously revamp their policies on handling civil sexual assault claims, like Anna Kull is saying 
. Three years is way too long for someone to be accused of doing something so heinous and not getting suspended or investigated till a year later is just ridiculous 
. It's also super concerning that 60% of the cases in court deal with decades-old abuse... it's like the system is letting these people down 
. We need to do better to protect our women inmates and ensure they feel safe and heard 
.
OMG this is so crazy! I'm literally shaking just thinking about it... Like, can you even believe that the DOC didn't take action sooner?! 
And 60% of cases dealing with decades-long patterns of abuse?! That's just appalling... Like, what kind of system allows that to happen? 
The fact that Martin Jr. was only fired after he got convicted (albeit acquitted) is just a slap on the wrist. We need real change now! 
And now that some of those people are suing him and getting convictions, I guess someone's finally doing something about it 
. But seriously though, I don’t know how many times you have to hear the same thing before it sinks in – women can't be trusted to lie about abuse just because they're 'crazy' or whatever 
. And yeah, it's a huge problem that these cases are being filed so far behind, like what if someone else got hurt in between the time the allegations were made and they actually got investigated? 
. I think the fact that they didn't take Collado's allegations seriously until a year later is wild, and now they're trying to spin it by saying Martin Jr.'s conviction proves they took her claim seriously? Give me a break 
. We need real changes, not just token gestures.
. If you're going through something like that, you deserve justice and support ASAP 
. The fact that they didn't take action sooner to protect these women is just mind-boggling 
. I mean, what if those women were too scared or ashamed to come forward? It's a system fail 
!
, how can the DOC not take allegations seriously, especially when it comes to women's safety? It's like, they're just waiting for someone to be arrested before they do anything 
The fact that Martin Jr. was able to work at Rikers Island for 3 years without being investigated is wild 
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... on one hand u gotta give it up 2 the women who came forward & spoke out about what they went thru... but at the same time, it's wild that the doc didn't take action sooner 
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. I can imagine how scared and vulnerable they must feel, waiting for justice to be served. And now with his conviction and firing, at least some accountability has been taken 
. But what really worries me is that these women may have felt silenced or ignored by the system in the first place 
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idk i'm not a lawyer or anything...
... and it's just devastating that they were silenced or ignored for so long. I can only imagine how scared and vulnerable they must've felt, waiting for someone to listen to their story. It's like, you would think that's what the DOC is there for - to keep people safe! But instead, it seems like they're more concerned with protecting themselves than the people in their care 
. We need to make sure that our system is working for everyone, not just those in power or with connections. I'm hoping that this lawyer's call for a review will lead to some real change and accountability 
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especially with all those women coming forward with similar stories it shows that there wasnt a high priority put on keeping everyone safe inside those walls sadly i hope they actually do take anna kull's suggestion seriously and make some real changes 
. And let's be real, there are systemic issues here - power imbalances between inmates & corrections officers, lack of transparency... 
The fact that the DOC didn't take these allegations seriously enough is just crazy. I feel so bad for all those women who were allegedly assaulted by Martin Jr.
And now, even though he's been convicted, some of these women are still having trouble coming forward because they were allegedly discouraged by officials who didn't take their claims seriously in the first place 