Last Operating US Prison Ship, Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center, to Close This Week Amid Criticisms of Inhumane Conditions

Closure of the floating detention facility marks the end of a controversial practice criticized for its inhumane conditions, as prisoners are reallocated to Rikers Island and authorities remain unclear on the ship's future use.

The Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center, the last operating prison ship in the U.S., is closing down this week after being heavily criticized for its poor living conditions and lack of sanitation which detainees described as inhumane.
Originally introduced in 1992 as a solution to overcrowding at Rikers Island, the ship will now see its roughly 500 current inmates transferred to Rikers Island as part of a larger plan to replace the city's correctional system with smaller jails.
High-profile cases of inmate deaths, such as Gregory Acevedo who jumped to his death in 2020, and Stephan Khadu who died of treatable meningitis contracted in custody, have increased scrutiny and criticism of the vessel.
Advocacy groups, including Freedom Agenda, have criticized the ship as a 'modern-day slave ship' that warehouses mainly Black and Latino men with minimal oversight, and argue that simply transferring inmates to Rikers Island does not solve the problem of inhumane conditions.
The Department of Correction has not disclosed future plans for the boat once inmates are transferred. The Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center, due to its history and controversy, remains a stark symbol of the failures of mass incarceration in the city.

Business Insider

The Christian Science Monitor