OCTOBER 2021

New York State’s
New Death Penalty:
The Death Toll of Mass
Incarceration in a Post
Execution Era
(j;] COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
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About the Center for Justice
at Columbia
The Center for Justice is committed to ending mass incarceration and
criminalization, and advancing alternative approaches to justice and safety through
education, research, and policy change. Its mission is to help transform approaches
to justice from being driven by punishment and retribution to being centered on
prevention, healing and accountability. The Center is interdisciplinary and works in
partnership with schools, departments, centers and institutes across Columbia, other
universities, government agencies, community organizations, advocates and those
directly affected by the criminal justice system.

Contributing Writers
Melissa Tanis is the Communications Coordinator at the Center for Justice at
Columbia University and a graduate of Columbia School of Social Work.
Cameron Rasmussen is the Program Director at the Center for Justice at Columbia
University and adjunct professor and graduate of Columbia School of Social Work.

2

Contents
Introduction................................................................... 4
Breakdown of Deaths Behind Bars....................................6
Age..........................................................................6
Time Served...............................................................7
Race......................................................................... 8
Valerie Gaiter..................................................................9
Overall Trends............................................................... 10
Trends in Age, Time Served, and Race....................... 10
Stanley Bellamy..............................................................12
Impact on Families…...................................................... 13
Recommendations..........................................................15
Conclusion.................................................................... 18

3

Introduction
New York State was once an international outlier in
its use of capital punishment. Prior to 1972, when
the US Supreme Court outlawed the death penalty,
New York ranked second in most executions of any
state in the country, executing 1130 people over a
364 year period1. Yet, abolishing the death penalty
did not slow death behind bars. Since 1976–when
the state began compiling data on deaths in
custody–7,504 people died while in the custody of
the New York State Department of Corrections and
Community Supervision (DOCCS). This is seven
times the number of deaths of those who were
executed by the state. Those who have died in
custody over the last 45 years have largely been
Black people, and particularly in the last decade,
older people and people serving sentences of
15 years or more. Increasingly, advocates and
lawmakers have come to call this devastating
reality “death by incarceration”2, or “death
by incarceration sentences”3 that ensure that
thousands will die in prison and/or face a Parole
Board that denies release to the majority of people
who appear before it, and disproportionately
denies release to Black New Yorkers4.
This report compiles and analyzes data on incustody deaths in New York State between 1976
and 2020 and offers policy recommendations
for curtailing the number of deaths behind bars.
Without policy intervention, thousands of currently
incarcerated New Yorkers are at risk of dying
behind bars in the years and decades to come.
All lives lost in the New York State correctional
system raise questions about the morality and
humanity of the state and its governance. The
large proportion of deaths of incarcerated Black
New Yorkers highlight the racism of criminal
justice policy in the state, and how the need for
racial justice is a matter of life and death. The
disproportionate deaths of older adults serving
long sentences highlight important questions about
the state’s investments in public and community
safety. Incarcerated adults aged 55 and older
are the least likely to commit a new crime across
all age groups5, and yet are kept in prison due
to a lack of meaningful opportunities for release
and repeated parole denials. Importantly, death
by incarceration sentences and repeated parole
denials ignore both the reality and possibility of
redemption and transformation for people in prison.

4

Older adults in prison are often leaders, mentors
and stewards of the community. Of those who are
released from prison, many continue their service
and leadership in their communities, mentoring
young people, providing reentry services for others
released from custody, and intervening to prevent
and reduce violence.
This report concludes that New York State must
end its new de facto death penalty and offers
recommendations towards this goal, including
policies with large community and legislative
support.

Key Findings

•

•
•
•
•
•
•

More people have died in NY State custody
in the last decade than the total of number of
people executed in the 364 years New York
State had the death penalty. 1,278 people
died in NY State custody in the last decade
compared to 1,130 who were executed in NY
State between 1608 and 1972.
Today, more than 1 in 2 people who die in
NY State custody are older adults, compared
to roughly 1 in 10 at the beginning of the era of
mass incarceration.
Every three days someone dies inside a NYS
prison, compared to every 12 days in 1976.
In 2018, Black people accounted for 45% of
all deaths in DOCCS custody, despite only
making up 14% of all deaths of New York State
residents.
People who have already served 15 years in
custody account for 9 times more of the total
deaths behind bars today than they did in the
1980s, the first full decade of available data.
40% of all deaths behind bars since 1976 of
people 55 and older happened in the last ten
years.
In the most recent decade, roughly 1 in 3
people who died behind bars had served
at least 15 years, compared to 1 in 29 in the
1980s.

Breakdown of Deaths Behind Bars
From January 1976 to October 2020, 7,504 people died in the custody of the New York
State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. In the first full year of the
collection of the data (1976), 30 people died behind bars. In the last full year (2019), 112
people died, an increase of 273%. This report considers three demographics in analyzing
the number of deaths: age, race, and time served.

►

Age

The total number of deaths behind bars started to drastically increase in the early 1980s into the
1990s as the total number of incarcerated people in New York State grew, more than tripling in size
from 1980 to 1999. Deaths during this time mostly impacted middle aged and younger incarcerated
people. In 1994, AIDS was the leading cause of death in people aged 25-44 nationwide6. At the
height of the epidemic in the United States, AIDS related deaths made up 65% of total deaths7 in NY
DOCCS custody* and 68% were people aged 25-44. In fact, 77% of all in-custody deaths since 1976
of people aged 25-44 occurred during the height of the AIDS epidemic.
The number of deaths each year for this age group has been in decline ever since, representing
less than 20% of deaths behind bars in the last decade. The total incarcerated population has also
decreased but the number of deaths of older people has skyrocketed,† with 40% of all deaths behind
bars of people 55 and older happening in just the last ten years.
In the first full decade of data collection, 118 older people–9% of all deaths–died in custody. But in
the most recent decade, 713 older people died, representing more than half–56%–of all in-custody
deaths. The increase in deaths of older people does not appear to be influenced by changes in
the total number of deaths. For example, the total number of deaths between the 1980s and 2010s
decreased by 7%, but the number of deaths of people 55 and older increased by 504%. Even during
the decade with the most total deaths by far (1990-1999), 11% of those deaths were of older people.
In the decade with the least amount of deaths (2010-2019) they make up 56%. As is evidenced by the
chart below, every age group has decreased in number of deaths as total deaths have decreased,
except for people 55 and older. It is only in recent decades, with harsher sentencing practices8 and
fewer parole releases granted9, that the number of deaths of older people has been vastly increasing.

56%

of deaths behind
bars in the last
decade were of
older people

504%

increase in deaths
behind bars of
people 55 & older
since the 1980s

40%

of deaths since 1976
of people 55 and
older happened in
the last ten years

*Those counted in the total deaths were only people whose illness was labeled an AIDS diagnosis by the Center for Disease Control, and did not include people who died
with HIV but without an official AIDS diagnosis.

5

†For the purposes of this report, “older” is defined as a person aged 55 or older. This is consistent with DOCCS’s own definition of who is considered “older” in prison.10

Deaths in Custody by Age
■ Tota l numb er of Deaths

■ Deaths und er 25 yea rs old

■ Deaths age 25-39

■ Deaths age 40-54

■ Deaths age 55 and older

1372
1980-1 989

3013
1990-1 999

1404

w

0

<(

(.)

w

1619

0

2000-2009

20 10-20 19

1000

2000

3000

“Researchers have said [55
and older] is a good measure
for [defining ‘aging’ in prison].
65 and older in the community
translates to 55 and older in
prison. Prison is stressful and
can exacerbate issues.”
–Acting NY DOCCS Commissioner Anthony
Annucci, February 2021 NY Senate Hearing
6

4000

►

Time Served

Concurrently with age, the amount of time served among people who have died in custody has
steadily increased despite the total number of deaths fluctuating and on a decline since the
AIDS epidemic. The data from DOCCS calculates time served by the number of months served in
custody, including prison and jail time. It is not a reflection of sentence
length, but is the amount of time someone had been incarcerated at
the time of their death. The data has been combined to show results
for people who had served under 15 years in custody at the time of
increase in deaths
their death, and people who had served over 15 years.

777%

behind bars of people
who have served 15 +
years since the 1980s

Incarcerated people who had served under 15 years at the time of
death make up 88% of all deaths behind bars. However, 64% of those
deaths happened during the AIDS epidemic. In the last decade, people who had served under 15
years at the time of death made up only 13% of deaths.
Similarly with older people, the number of deaths of people serving 15 or more years began to
skyrocket in the 2000s. During the 1990s this group represented only 3.8% of all deaths. In the last
decade, they made up 32%. The number of deaths of people who had served 15 or more years at
the time of their death also does not appear to be dependent upon the overall number of deaths.
Since the 1990s, the total number of deaths fell by 136% but the number of deaths of people who
have served 15 or more years increased by 258%, and by 777% since the 1980s. Today, roughly 1 in
3 people who die behind bars have served at least 15 years, compared to 1 in 29 in the 1980s.

Time Served in Custody at Time of Death
■ Total Num be r of Death s

■ Death s of peop le servin g under 15 yea rs

Deaths of peop le servin g 15+ years

Q)

-0

"'u
Q)

0

0

7

1000

*total missing 10 cases, 7494 total deaths versus 7504

2000

3000

4000

►

Race

The race data analyzed for this report only includes deaths of Black and White people because (1)
there were 36 years of missing data for two race groups, and (2) Asian people and Native American
people made up less than 1% of total deaths. Deaths of Black and White people together made
up 71% of all deaths. The race of 27% of the deaths reported was either
unknown or labeled as “other”. Additionally, there is data missing for the
race demographic from 1985–1987. In the 1980s, the total number of deaths
and number of deaths by race was calculated excluding those three years
of missing data.
of all deaths behind

41%

bars from 1976-2020
were Black people

From 1976-2020, Black people have comprised anywhere between
37%–58% of all deaths behind bars. 41% of the 7,504 deaths in DOCCS
custody during this time were Black people, compared to 30% White. At the height of the AIDS
epidemic, Black people comprised an alarmingly higher number of deaths than White people or
any other race. Black people made up 70% more of the total deaths than White people. While
the number of Black people has remained consistently high over the years, the number of White
people dying behind bars has increased by 222% since the 1980s, despite their incarceration rate
decreasing. Although the number of deaths of Black people behind bars is proportional to their
overall incarcerated population (48%), their incarcerated percentage is disproportionate to their
percentage of the state’s population, making up only 18% of NYS residents.12

Number of Deaths by Race
■ Numb er of White Death s

Number of Black Deaths

1500

1000

500

0
1980-1 989*

1990-1 999

2000-2009
Decade

*three years of data is missing for the 1980-1989 range

8

20 10-20 19

The numbers alone are concerning, but the stories behind them are devastating. The 7,504 people
who have died in New York State prisons were mothers, fathers, grandparents, siblings, and
children. Many would have had an opportunity for release if they had not died before getting the
chance.
One such story is that of Valerie Gaiter.

Valerie Gaiter
When Valerie was 19 years old, she and a friend robbed and killed two people in an
attempt to get money for drugs. Val was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison,
meaning she would not have seen the Parole Board until she was 73 years old.
During her time in prison, Valerie Gaiter was
a mentor to young women at Bedford Hills
Correctional Facility in Bedford Hills, NY. She
worked with the Puppies Behind Bars program,
and was the photographer in the prison visiting
room. One of Val’s friends said of her, “Over time
Valerie Gaiter became one of my best friends. I
was amazed at how much she accomplished
during her time. She wanted to be the best
person she could be. She never believed she
wouldn’t get out of prison one day.”
On Tuesday, August 13th, 2019, Val died in
DOCCS custody. She was 61 years old and had
been in prison for nearly 40 years. At the time of
her death, she was the longest-serving woman
in a New York State prison. Val had only recently
been diagnosed with cancer and never received treatment. Val’s death could have
been prevented, not only through adequate healthcare, but through policies that
would have allowed Valerie’s accomplishments and transformation to be seen by a
Parole Board earlier in her life.

1 in 3
9

In the last decade, 1 in 3 people who died behind
bars had served at least 15 years

Overall Trends
Stories like Val’s will continue to be the norm if no action is taken to disrupt the rising
numbers of older people dying behind bars. Despite the overall number of deaths declining,
people who are 55 and older and serving 15 or more years in prison are at an especially
higher risk of dying behind bars than they were only a few decades ago.

►

Trends in Age, Time Served, and Race

The ratio of deaths of older people has skyrocketed within the last two decades. The trend is
continuing upward, and suggests that the 2020s will maintain that the majority of deaths in prison
are of people 55 or older. For the
Percentage of Total Deaths That Were People Aged 55+
ten months of data collected in
80%
2020, 55 of the 98 deaths were
of older people, keeping with the
56% average of the last ten years. If
"'"
'"
action is not taken, it would not be
~
~ 40%
far-fetched to assume the number
i
will keep with the trend or worse,
'" 20%
potentially increase.
~
0

0
0

~

:;

n.

1990

2000

2010

Year

Percentage of Dea t hs of People Who Served 15+ Years
◄ 0 . 001'

~

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~

3000,W.

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Ill
0

~
~
Q

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10 00'1,

0
~
~
~

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0

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~
~

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10

10.001'

2020

The number of deaths will also
continue to be largely of people
serving 15 or more years. 29%
of the total number of deaths in
2020, with two months of data
not yet accounted for, were of
people serving 15 or more years.
The average for the last decade
is 32%. It is worth noting that
the National Institute of Justice
confirms there is no evidence
that harsher punishments, longer
sentences, the death penalty, or
even sending someone to prison to
begin with has any effect on crime
deterrence.13

The graph below indicates that the number of Black people who have died in DOCCS custody stays
consistently high, while deaths of White people have increased in recent years. It is unclear why the
number of deaths behind bars of White people has doubled since the 1980s, despite their overall
incarceration rate decreasing since that time. According to the Vera Institute of Justice, from 19782015, Black people on average comprised 51% of the incarcerated population. Since 2000, Black
people have been incarcerated at more than twice the rate of any other race.14
No matter how the total number of deaths behind bars fluctuated over time, Black people
consistently made up a large proportion of the deaths, having the highest number of deaths in 35
of the 45 years of data. This deviates from mortality rates outside of DOCCS custody. According to
recent health data, Black people comprised 14% of all deaths in New York State in 2018, but made
up 45% of all deaths in custody the same year. 77% of deaths in New York State at large in 2018
were White people, while 43% of deaths in custody were White people.15
From January to October 2020, 45% of all deaths were of Black people and 38% were White. It is
unclear from the data from 2020 if the number of White deaths will continue to increase, but the
steadily high number of Black deaths and incarceration rate of Black people suggests they will
continue to die behind bars the same amount or more than other races unless policy is enacted to
slow down their incarceration rate and increase their release rate.

Percentage of All Deaths in DOCCS Custody By Race
-

Perce ntage of death s for w hite people

-

Percentage of deaths for Black people

50

40

30

20

10

0--------------------------------------1980-1 989

1990-1 999

*three years of data is missing for the 1980-1989 range

2000-2009

Decade

In the last decade...

1,278
11

20 10- 20 19

people died in NYS prisons. This is
more than the number of people
executed during NY’s 364-year use
of the death penalty.

43%

56%

were Black

were 55 and older

were White

had served 15+ years

44%

32%

Over the next decade, people aged 55 and older are expected to make up one-third of the overall
prison population16. According to DOCCS’s most recent “In Custody Report” from 2019, 12,104
people incarcerated in New York State prisons were serving sentences of 15 or more years, and
299 people were serving life without parole sentences17. Without policy intervention, many of these
individuals will die behind bars without ever seeing a Parole Board or being granted release.
One of the people at risk of dying is Stanley Bellamy.

Stanley Bellamy
Stanley Bellamy is 58 years old and currently incarcerated at Green Haven
Correctional Facility in Stormville, NY. Stanley went to prison at 23 years old
for his involvement in a robbery in which someone was killed. In his own words,
Stanley says he “entered the prison system
as an impulsive 23 year-old who did not value
life, not even his own” but that he is now “a
mature 58 year-old man, who years ago came
to the realization and the understanding of
the harm, the pain and suffering my crime
caused the victim’s family, my family, and
my community.” Stanley has spent his time in
prison–36 years so far–trying to repair the hurt
he caused by mentoring younger incarcerated
peers and founding and facilitating in-prison
programs. Stanley is a college graduate and
grandfather. His 62.5-year to life sentence
won’t allow him to appear before the Parole
Board until after his 86th birthday.
If the trends of deaths among older, Black people who have served 15+ years in New
York State correctional facilities continue to rise, Stanley Bellamy, an incredible
mentor and leader, will die in prison before he reaches his minimum sentence of
62.5 years.

1 in 2
12

Almost 1 in every 2 people who die behind bars is
Black. At one point, 58% of deaths in prison were
Black people.

Impact on Families
While this report primarily analyzes the existing data on deaths in New York DOCCS
custody over the last 45 years, the ripple effects of incarceration and death behind bars
extend beyond prison walls. According to a recent study by FWD.us, 1 in 7 adults in the US
have had an immediate family member incarcerated for at least a year. At any given time
in the US, 2.7 million children have a parent who is incarcerated and in New York State,
105,000 children have an incarcerated parent.
Families with incarcerated loved ones are at a higher risk of developing physical and mental health
issues18. In a recent public health study, researchers found that experiencing the incarceration
of a family member decreased life expectancy between 2.6–4.6 years.19 The longer the family
member was incarcerated and the more family members incarcerated the greater the reduction
in life expectancy of their family members. Additionally, family members of incarcerated people
reported lower overall well-being and are at a higher risk of poor health outcomes. In a survey
conducted within the last year, family members with incarcerated loved ones, mostly from New York
State, reported numerous health issues including anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, high blood
pressure, substance use disorder, sleep apnea, cancer, and more. Participants attribute the issues
directly to the stress of their loved one’s incarceration or note that the health issues started or
became worse after their loved one became incarcerated. 20
One New Yorker, whose father died in prison, said,

“

I’m 31 years old, and I think I’ve often felt my body aged
faster….In prison people’s bodies and minds physiologically
age faster than people who are not incarcerated. Sometimes I
wonder if that happens to family members...if I grew up faster
[because of the trauma of my dad’s incarceration], maybe my
body did as well. Maybe physically it did as well.

“

Family members of an incarcerated person can experience a
“secondary prisonization”. Coined by Megan Comfort in 2008,
“secondary prisonization” refers to the ways in which the punitive
nature of the system and negative consequences of incarceration
impact family members visiting and maintaining their relationship
with their loved one as well as in their daily lives.21 The longer the
sentence, the longer family members must deal with the stress of
the penal system and experience secondary prisonization.

13

Family members with incarcerated loved
ones rally outside former Governor Cuomo’s
office for a “Home For the Holidays” rally

Those whose loved ones have life, virtual life or life without parole sentences must deal every day
with the very high, if not certain, possibility that their loved one will die behind bars. As the data
in this report shows, that risk is also high for people 55 and older and for people who are serving
long sentences. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic adds another layer of risk of death of those
currently incarcerated who cannot protect themselves well. Thus, addressing COVID-19 behind bars
and providing more opportunities for people to be released, will likely have a positive impact on the
mental and physical health and potential longevity of their family members as well.

Theresa Grady
My husband is 66 years old. He has been incarcerated for 16 years and, even
though he is a totally different person than he was when he committed his crime,
he faces at least another 26 years in prison, when he is 92 years old, unless the law
changes. Incarcerated people do not live to be 92. Amid this pandemic, his asthma,
diabetes, and kidney issues may take him from
me far sooner. My husband was effectively
sentenced to death in a cage. I worry for him
every day. It both helps and hurts to know that
I am not alone. Many families have already
lost incarcerated loved ones to COVID, and
many more have lost them to other premature
deaths in prison. More than 1,000 people died
in prison under former Governor Cuomo and
another 1,000 are effectively sentenced to die
in the coming years and decades. At the same
time, many New Yorkers in prison have lost
loved ones to COVID on the outside. There is an
especially depressing element to all COVID deaths that may help to illuminate the
suffering of families separated by incarceration: Because the virus is so contagious,
people often get no chance to say goodbye and their loved ones die alone. That
is nearly always our experience when we lose a loved one in prison. With COVID
spreading in our communities and behind bars, many of them may never return—
unless lawmakers take quick action.

2.6 years
14

The life expectancy decrease for family
members who have had at least one
immediate family member incarcerated.

Recommendations
As researchers, advocates, and policy makers continue to raise the alarm of the life and
death nature of long prison sentences and parole denials, the New York State Governor and
Legislature have the means to interrupt the upward trend in deaths of older New Yorkers.
The following recommendations provide critical steps with substantial support that policymakers can and should adopt immediately. Enacting these policies will save lives and begin
to shift course on what investments in public and community safety can look like.

►

Address Aging in Prison

Elder Parole
New York’s Elder Parole bill (S15/A3475A) would allow incarcerated people aged 55 and older who
have already served 15 or more years a chance to go before the Parole Board and be individually
evaluated for release on a case-by-case basis. Roughly 1,000 people would immediately become
eligible for parole with the passage of Elder Parole, and thousands more people would ultimately
benefit in years to come. Elder Parole would save lives, reunite families, promote racial justice, and
save the state tens of millions of dollars annually. 22 The Elder Parole bill does not provide automatic
release but instead a meaningful review and evaluation by the Parole Board, something that is not
reasonably available to many older incarcerated New Yorkers, who may be forced to wait decades
for a hearing or never receive one at all. This bill is a critical step towards reducing the number of
people subjected to long and life sentences in New York; reducing the number of deaths behind
bars overall and of older people; and promoting public safety by releasing people whose risk of
recidivism is very low but who are highly likely to help communities on the outside reduce violence.

Benjamin Smalls
Benjamin Smalls was 72 years old and had already served
more than 20 years in prison when he died in May 2020
of COVID-19. He had a 118-page clemency application and
medical parole request pending when he died, but both
clemency and medical parole are seldom granted. Smalls
showed symptoms of COVID-19 in early April and was
hospitalized two days later. His daughter said “He said to
me, ‘I have a window [in my hospital room] I can look out of. That’s better than being in
my cell. I can’t ask for anything more right now other than to be free.’” If Elder Parole
had been enacted, Smalls and so many others would have had a more meaningful
opportunity for release instead of contracting COVID-19 behind bars.
15

Recommendations, ctd.

►

Address Repeated Parole Denials

Fair + Timely Parole
A lack of meaningful opportunities for parole release is a major contributing factor to the rise of
prison deaths of older people. Often, Parole Commissioners cite the nature of a person’s original
crime of conviction as the primary reason for denial. By looking only at the facts of the underlying
crime of conviction, freedom is based on events that happened many decades in the past, and
on facts that can never change. Repeated parole denials do not acknowledge the transformation
many people have made while incarcerated, mean that families and communities are deprived of
their elders and loved ones, and mean that thousands of people are spending decades beyond
their court-imposed minimum sentence behind prison walls. New York’s Fair and Timely Parole Act
(S1415/A4231A) would provide more meaningful parole reviews for incarcerated people who are
already parole eligible. The bill would change the standard of parole by centering release not on
the original crime but on the person’s current risk and rehabilitation while incarcerated. In other
words, parole commissioners would no longer be able to deny release based solely on the crime
for which the person is convicted. This is a meaningful step towards ensuring fairer parole hearings,
increasing New York’s low parole release rate, and reducing the number of New Yorkers behind
bars, along with the number of deaths behind bars.

Composition of the Parole Board
Implementing Elder Parole and Fair and Timely Parole effectively requires a fully staffed and fair
Parole Board. The Parole Board in New York can be staffed with up to 19 parole commissioners,
but as of July 2021, there are only 15 commissioners. The Parole Board interviews more than 11,000
people every year—roughly 60 hearings per day—via video conferences that last an average of 15
minutes.
Commissioners historically have come from law enforcement or prosecutorial backgrounds, and
racism and white supremacy permeates the parole process. For example, a front-page story in the
Albany Times Union published in November 2020 found that the Parole Board was far less likely to
release Black and Latinx people than White people, including during the pandemic23. These racially
biased parole decisions are especially concerning given that on average between 1976 and 2020
41% of the people who died in custody are Black.
By fully staffing the Parole Board with commissioners who can adequately evaluate rehabilitation,
more incarcerated New Yorkers can receive a more fair parole hearing and possibly be released.

16

Recommendations, ctd.

►

Address the COVID-19 Pandemic

According to DOCCS, 35 people incarcerated in New York State have died from COVID-19 since
the pandemic began24, although this number is likely an underestimate*. Incarcerated New Yorkers
are some of the most vulnerable to the virus and have experienced delays in receiving PPE, testing,
and vaccination. As of September 2021, New York is one of 15 states that has yet to vaccinate more
than 60% of incarcerated people25. Few release mechanisms, like clemency, were employed as
a means to reduce the severity and spread of the virus.26 Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic
disproportionately impacts Black and Latinx incarcerated people, with Black people experiencing
the highest number of COVID-related deaths in prison.27
The drastic increase in deaths in prisons during the AIDS epidemic should cause New York
legislators to act urgently to ensure more deaths do not happen in New York State correctional
facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Legislators should also act urgently because Parole Board
release rates decreased28 during the pandemic and former governor Andrew Cuomo only used
his executive power of clemency sparingly and failed to protect incarcerated New Yorkers from
the virus. Governor Hochul should now do her part in reducing the prison population by using her
executive power to grant mass clemencies.

►

Support Families

Maintaining a relationship with a loved one behind bars is stressful, constantly met with barriers,
and extremely costly to families who may already be struggling with providing for their family while
a loved one is incarcerated. Repeated parole denials crush the hopes of family members waiting for
their loved ones to come home. Families who have experienced a death behind bars will carry that
trauma with them for the rest of their life.
Families deserve to have their “secondary prisonization” recognized and to be supported. One way
to support families maintaining connections with people in prison is to protect in-person visits. The
COVID-19 pandemic halted in-person visits for families and many went a whole year or more without
seeing their loved ones. Now, virtual visits are threatening to replace in-person visits. Having access
to see, hug, touch, and be in the presence of an incarcerated loved one is shown to increase the
well-being of the person who is incarcerated and their family.29 The Protect In-Person Visiting Bill
(A4250A), which will prevent New York State Correctional Facilities from reducing visits or replacing
in-person visits with video visits, passed in the New York State Senate in the 2021 session,30 and
should now be passed by the Assembly and signed by the Governor.
Ultimately, what will have the most impact on reducing the impact of incarceration on families is
to release their loved ones. Passing Elder Parole and Fair and Timely Parole, as well as changing
the composition of the Parole Board, will give families real hope that their family members won’t die
behind bars.
17

*it is unknown when this report was last updated, considering that the NY Daily News reported in May 2020 that 27 people in
DOCCS custody had already died in 2020.

Conclusion
Deaths behind bars are not a reality we have to accept as a natural result of incarceration. An
increase in punitive sentencing, repeated parole denials, and keeping older people behind bars for
longer periods created a new death penalty in New York State. In addition to incarceration reducing
a family member’s life expectancy, a 2016 study found that each year a person is incarcerated
reduces their life expectancy by two years.31 Every time an incarcerated elder is denied parole and
kept in prison for up to two more years before their next hearing, years are shaved off of their life
expectancy and the possibility of them getting out alive decreases. Death by incarceration is no
more humane than a legalized death penalty, and repeated parole denials that offer false hope to
incarcerated people and their families border on cruel and unusal punishment. Neither has been
proven in any way to keep New Yorkers safe. New York State has an opportunity to undo the deadly
practices of the past and begin to reduce death behind bars by passing Elder Parole and Fair and
Timely Parole, and fully staffing the Parole Board with commissioners who believe in rehabilitation.
Policy decisions led us to where we are and policy decisions can move us out of it. New York used
to be a leader in executions across the country. Abolishing the death penalty meant that New
York then became a leader in death-by-incarceration sentences. Lawmakers now have the historic
opportunity to be a leader in parole justice, reducing deaths behind bars and reuniting families.

18

References
1

Death Penalty Information Center. (n.d.). New York. Retrieved from:
https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/state-and-federal-info/state-by-state/new-york#

2 Decarcerate

PA. (n.d.) The Coalition to Abolish Death By Incarceration. Retrieved from
https://decarceratepa.info/CADBI

3 Center

for Constitutional Rights. (2021, February 8). People Serving Death By Incarceration Sentences in PA Urge
Court to Allow Claims to Be Heard. Retrieved from https://ccrjustice.org/home/press-center/press-releases/
people-serving-death-incarceration-sentences-pa-urge-court-allow

4

The Center for Race, Inequality, and the Law at New York University & The Parole Preparation Project (2021). The
Problem With Parole: New York State’s Failing System of Release. Retrieved from: https://rappcampaign.com/theproblem-with-parole-new-york-states-failing-system-of-release/

5

Vera Institute of Justice, (2017, December) Aging Out: Using Compassionate Release to Address the Growth of Aging
and Infirm Prison Populations. Retrieved from:
https://www.vera.org/publications/compassionate-release-aging-infirm-prison-populations

6

Center for Disease Control (1994). Update: Mortality Attributable to HIV Infection Among Persons Aged 25-44 Years -United States. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00040227.htm

New York State AIDS Advisory Council. (1999). Report on HIV/AIDS Services in New York State Correctional Facilities.
Retrieved from https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/aids/providers/workgroups/aac/docs/servicescorrectional.
pdf
8 Grawert, A., Kimble, C., & Fielding, J. (2021). Poverty and Mass Incarceration in New York An Agenda for Change.
Retrieved from: https://www.brennancenter.org/sites/default/files/2021-02/PovertyMassIncarcerationNY.pdf

7

9

The Center for Race, Inequality, and the Law at New York University & The Parole Preparation Project (2021). The
Problem With Parole

10 Joint

Legislative Public Hearing on 2021 Executive Budget Proposal: Topic Public Protection, Senate, (New York, 2021,
February 10) (Testimony of Acting DOCCS Commissioner Anthony Annucci)
https://www.nysenate.gov/calendar/public-hearings/february-10-2021/joint-legislative-public-hearing-2021-exec
utive-budget

11 Joint

Legislative Public Hearing on 2021 Executive Budget Proposal: Topic Public Protection, Senate, (New York, 2021,
February 10) (Testimony of Acting DOCCS Commissioner Anthony Annucci)
https://www.nysenate.gov/calendar/public-hearings/february-10-2021/joint-legislative-public-hearing-2021-exec
utive-budget

12

United States Census Bureau, Quick Facts New York, https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/NY.

13

National Institute of Justice. (2016). Five Things About Deterrence. Retrieved from:
https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/247350.pdf

14 Vera

Institute of Justice. (n.d.) Incarceration Trends. Retrieved from: http://trends.vera.org/rates/new-york

15 New

York State Department of Health. (2018). Death Summary Information by Race/Ethnicity New York State.
Retrieved from: https://www.health.ny.gov/statistics/vital_statistics/2018/table31a.htm

16 Gaynes,

E., Krupat, T., George, D., and Bernatzky, C. (2018). The high costs of low risk: The crisis of America’s aging
prison population. Retrieved from The Osborne Association Website:
http://www.osborneny.org/resources/the-high-costs-of-low-risk/hclr/

19

17

New York State Department Of Corrections & Community. Supervision, Under Custody Report 18 (2020), Retrieved from:
https://doccs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2021/05/under-custody-report-2019.pdf

18

fwd.us. (2018). Every Second: The Impact of the Incarceration Crisis on American Families. Retrieved from:
https://everysecond.fwd.us/downloads/EverySecond.fwd.us.pdf

19

Sundaresh R, Yi Y, Harvey TD, et al. Exposure to Family Member Incarceration and Adult Well-being in the United
States. JAMA Netw Open. 2021;4(5):e2111821. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.1182

20

Lifsec, A 2021, ‘The Ripple Effect: Family Health in the era of Mass Incarceration’, Honors Thesis, Cornell University,
Ithaca.

References
21 Comfort,

Megan. 2008. Doing Time Together: Love and Family in the Shadow of the Prison. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press.

22

Center for Justice at Columbia University (2021). Unlocking Billions: A Fiscal Analysis of Pending Justice Reforms in
New York State. Retrieved from: https://centerforjustice.columbia.edu/sites/default/files/content/Final%20Un
locking%20Billions%20Report.pdf

23 McKinley,

E. & Fries, A. (2020, November 22) A ‘broken’ parole process: Data shows widened racial bias. Times
Union. https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/A-broken-parole-process-Data-show-widening-15739596.php

24

Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. (2021). DOCCS COVID-19 Report. Retrieved from:
https://doccs.ny.gov/doccs-covid-19-report

25

Herring, T. and Sharma, M. (2021, September 1). States of emergency: The failure of prison system responses to
COVID-19. Prison Policy Initiative. https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/states_of_emergency.html

26 Mehta,

A. (2021, May 24). How New York State Let Covid-19 Run Rampant in Prisons. The Nation.
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/covid-prison-new-york/

27 Goldberg,

N. (2020, May 14). NY prisons see sharp spike in deaths since coronavirus outbreak, blacks hit hardest
behind bars. NY Daily News. Retrieved from:
https://www.nydailynews.com/coronavirus/ny-coronavirus-prison-deaths-blacks-disproportionate-20200514xjk4v5wowrhrfpiil5gevbgyui-story.html

28 Herring,

T. (2021, February 3). Parole boards approved fewer releases in 2020 than in 2019, despite the raging
pandemic. Prison Policy Initiative. Retrieved from: https://www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2021/02/03/parolegrants/

20

29

Osborne Association. (2019). Fact sheet: Support Proximity. Retrieved from:
https://www.osborneny.org/assets/files/Protect-In-Person-Visiting-Fact-Sheet-2021.docx.pdf

30

Osborne Association. (2019). Fact sheet: Support Proximity

31

Wildeman, Christopher (2016) Incarceration and Population Health in Wealthy Democracies: Incarceration and
Population Health. Criminology. 54.

~ COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
CENTER FOR JUSTICE