CALL TO ACTION: All Eyes on Court

Another man died in a holding cell waiting to be arraigned on Wednesday morning. He was arrested for allegedly holding a subway gate open. 

No one should die waiting to be arraigned for any alleged crime.

One difference from last week’s tragedy is that the man who lost his life this week had not been kept waiting for more than the legal twenty-four hours. It is clear that waiting for arraignment for any length of time is not humane or safe. Abiding by the rules of the state still leads to irreparable harm. 

Public defenders have told us how valuable it is for their clients to have had court watchers present in court over the past few days. Our presence pressures prosecutors and judges to act differently. 

We’re calling on the Court Watch community now to flood the court with watchers. This cannot continue. We need eyes in courtrooms to show judges the community is watching. Our goal is to have a court watcher at every single shift in the month of April, especially in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Are you a trained watcher? Sign up for shifts in the For Watchers section of our website. We will send a follow-up email to make sure you have everything you need to sign up and go to court.

Would you like to join our community of trained court watchers? If you haven’t been trained but would like to join this action, please sign up for the first session of our next virtual training on April 10 from 7:30-9pm. 

In Solidarity,

Court Watch NYC