Public defenders are asking the city's inspector general to automatically investigate all deaths in NYPD custody after at least five people lost their lives under the department's watch this year.

According to a letter from the Legal Aid Society to the city’s Department of Investigation, those deaths were "unacceptable and unconscionable" — and the department's internal findings may not see the light of day.

“The NYPD’s lack of transparency around how and why these deaths occurred enables these harms to reoccur,” the letter said.

When the NYPD makes an arrest, police often hold a suspect until they’re arraigned, at which point they're released or head to Rikers Island and await trial. The death toll at Rikers continues to mount as well, but any death there kicks off a full investigation

See Full Page