A 60-year-old man facing burglary charges died Thursday at the Bellevue Hospital jail ward after a battle with cancer, according to correction officials, becoming the fifth death in city custody this year and triggering criticism about the decision to hold him in jail while he was ill.
The Legal Aid Society, which represented Ricky Howell, released a statement slamming the judges and prosecutors whom they said refused to release Howell last year while he was dying from stage four cancer.
“The judges and prosecutors on Staten Island who vigorously fought to keep him jailed despite knowing full well his medical condition and imminent death, and that he posed no threat to public safety, [are] truly disgraceful, callous, and devoid of any human decency,” the Legal Aid Society statement read.
But court documents show that judges, aware of his condition, expressed regret in keeping Howell in custody because he repeatedly skipped court and was arrested for other crimes while free. On two occasions, according to court papers, prosecutors actually agreed to release Howell, but both times he failed to abide by the terms of his release.
“The death of any New Yorker is a tragedy, however the facts and history of Mr. Howell’s journey through the criminal justice system clearly show our office’s repeated efforts, and Mr. Howell’s repeated failures, to lead a law abiding life and to receive medical treatment outside Department of Correction custody,” Staten Island’s district attorney, Michael McMahon, said in a statement.
Howell, who was recently homeless, pleaded guilty last year to third-degree burglary for stealing a set of tools from a garage on Staten Island in 2021. After initially failing to make $5,000 bail, prosecutors and a judge agreed to release Howell due to his illness on the condition that he maintain his medical care.
But Howell missed follow-up court dates in the fall of 2021, resulting in a warrant for his arrest. When police brought him to court…
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