This is the inside of a psychiatric unit on Rikers Island. It’s the morning of Aug. 25, 2022. And soon, this inmate, Michael Nieves, will attempt to commit suicide by cutting his own throat. He’ll bleed out for 10 minutes as officers stand by and wait for medical help. But Michael Nieves is just one of many cases of preventable harm on Rikers Island that ultimately led a federal judge to strip control of the jail from the City of New York in May. Soon, an independent manager will be appointed. After almost three years of filing Freedom of Information requests and lawsuits, The New York Times has now obtained videos of incidents that contributed to this decision, including that of Nieves. They take us inside Rikers, a place rarely seen by the public, and show serious lapses in the care of inmates. A long-serving member of an independent oversight body, who we’ll hear from later, told us that the case of Michael Nieves is characteristic of the problems inside the jail. Here’s what happened. It’s around 11:30 a.m., and a search of Michael Nieves’s cell fails to turn up a shaving razor he was given to use in the shower that morning. Capt. Mary Tinsley, the supervisor in charge, instructs Officer Beethoven Joseph, whose body camera footage we see here, to take Nieves for a body scan to see if he is hiding the razor. But Tinsley grows impatient with Nieves. Officers close the door and walk away. This is one of a series of mistakes that play out. These officers are trained to work with severely mentally ill detainees like Nieves, a once-gifted student who was later diagnosed with bipolar and schizophrenia disorders. Like most inmates on Rikers, Nieves was awaiting trial and had not yet been convicted of a crime. He was arrested on burglary and arson charges in 2019, but was deemed unfit to stand trial and held in forensic psychiatric facilities before being sent back to Rikers. Nieves had a long history of suicide attempts. And even though officers suspect he has the razor, he is left alone for 12 minutes while they search the cell of another inmate. Then Joseph returns, followed by Tinsley. She radios for help. The scene is disturbing, but we’re showing it briefly to illustrate what the officers could see. Nieves has cut his neck and is bleeding heavily onto the floor. Pressure needs to be applied to the wound immediately, and he needs to get to a hospital. At first, Nieves doesn’t respond. And the officers and Captain Tinsley don’t intervene. Officer Joseph faces a complex situation. Jail guidelines do not clearly say he should treat a severely bleeding wound. And officers are advised to use caution when they might be lured into danger. But state law does require him to render care in life-threatening situations. It’s unclear if he recognizes it as such. No one enters the cell. Instead, they offer Nieves a piece of clothing. Five minutes have passed. Officer Joseph asks about the bleeding. Eight minutes have passed. Nieves slides down to the floor. Officer Joseph shows concern, but remains by the door. After 10 minutes, the medics arrive on the ward and enter the cell. But there’s been a communication breakdown. The medics aren’t aware that Nieves is bleeding profusely, and they don’t have the right supplies. As they spring into action, the medics berate the correction officers. As medics render aid, Officer Joseph goes to review his notes and talks with another staff member. About an hour after Nieves was found bleeding, over a dozen medics, staff, and E.M.T.s are treating him on site. Shortly after, he was taken to a nearby hospital, declared brain dead and removed from life support five days later. “This was preventable.” Dr. Robert Cohen is a member of the Board of Correction, which monitors Rikers, and agreed to speak about the jail and the Nieves case in a personal capacity, not on behalf of the board. He retired shortly after this interview. “He should not have been left alone once they believed that he was in possession of a razor. By policy, he should have been taken immediately to the body scanner.” “He was bleeding to death. The correction officer should have gone into the room, assessed what was going on and should have applied pressure to the area where the blood was coming from.” A city medical examiner found that the officer’s inaction contributed to Nieves’s death, but that he could have died even with emergency aid. The state attorney general’s office therefore declined to charge the officers. Their report also found that the officers lacked clear protocols and might not have had training on severely bleeding wounds. It recommended that officers be required and trained to act in these situations in the future. Dr. Cohen says that what happened to Nieves is characteristic of chronic problems inside Rikers. “Since I’ve been on the board, these deaths have happened multiple times. Jason Echevarria swallowed a number of soap balls. He was screaming all night long. Jerome Murdough was put in a cell where there was a heating malfunction, baked to death. Mercado had diabetes. He was trying to get help. He never received insulin. Nicholas Feliciano hung himself. Seven officers were completely aware of this, and they did nothing — 7 minutes and 51 seconds passed. He did not die, but he has severe brain damage.” Nieves’s death occurred two years into the Covid pandemic, a time when Rikers was facing acute challenges and a staffing crisis that watchdogs say led to a spike in preventable deaths. “Many deaths over the past five years and the reports of deteriorating conditions were instrumental in moving us to the point right now where the judge is going to take over the island with an independent manager.” But even after that happens, New York’s next mayor will be tasked with trying to close Rikers. The original plan was to replace it with smaller jails and in four New York City boroughs by 2026. But after years of delays, here’s what those sites look like today. They’re nowhere near done. Oversight bodies, and even the former Manhattan U.S. attorney, have said that Rikers remains unsafe for detainees. The Department of Correction told The Times that a new medical emergencies curriculum is still being developed. A spokesperson for the Correction Officers Union said they followed regulations and have been vindicated. And the Captain’s Union, which represented Captain Tinsley, said she also followed protocol. Nieves was one of three brothers. His family is now suing the city.

On a recent afternoon, an ensemble of serious young musicians gathered to practice “Fuga con Pajarillo,” a piece by Aldemaro Romero that combines Western concert hall traditions with Venezuelan folk music. The strings soared dramatically, building against a syncopated beat, like a complex dance.

Two hours later, they were exhausted — and exhilarated.