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May 31, 2023

Joshua Valles Is the Third Rikers Island Detainee to Die in 2023
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In New York, a detainee at Rikers Island died last week after becoming
sick. Thirty-one-year-old Joshua Valles was being held at the
psychiatric unit and was transferred to a hospital after complaining of
a headache and vomiting. He died a week later. Joshua Valles is the
third death at Rikers this year. 2022 was the deadliest year at the jail
complex in almost a decade. A recent report by a federal monitor warned
prisoners at Rikers are at "imminent risk" of harm, and renewed calls
for a federal takeover of New York City jails.


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