Federal Court Preliminarily Approves Settlement in Class Action Claiming Bail Release Delays in City Jails

A Manhattan federal judge has preliminarily approved a proposed class action settlement in a long-running lawsuit against the New York City Department of Correction alleging the systematic, unconstitutional over-detention of people entitled to release on bail from City jails.

Under the terms of the settlement, the City has agreed to pay $3,500 for each instance in which DOC failed to promptly release an inmate on bail. Tens of thousands of individuals who were released on bail from Rikers Island or other DOC facilities since October 2014 are eligible to receive these payments. Depending on the rate of participation by eligible class members, payments under the settlement could total $300 million or more. The settlement is believed to be one of the largest in the history of DOC. The court’s preliminary approval order appointed KLLF as class counsel, along with co-counsel Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP and Romano & Kuan PLLC. KLLF partner David Lebowitz has represented the plaintiffs since the case was filed in 2017.

The court has scheduled a hearing on final approval of the proposed settlement for July 11, 2023. Efforts will be made to notify eligible individuals of their right to claim money from the settlement in the coming months. More information about the process is available on the dedicated settlement website, www.nycbailsettlement.com.