A new proposal being considered by the New York City Council would limit the use of pepper spray by correctional officers to control the behavior of inmates in city jails.
The bill, introduced Thursday, would require correctional officers to get authorization from their tour commander before using high-potency oleoresin capsicum sprays, also known as pepper spray, on inmates except in emergency situations.
Democratic Councilwoman Sandy Nurse, who chairs the criminal justice committee, introduced the bill at Thursday's council meeting, putting it on the agenda but not discussing it, according to the New York Post. Democratic Councilwoman Tiffany Cabán signed the legislation as a co-sponsor.
Under the proposal, pepper spray could only be used in “emergency situations where a delay in its use… would present an immediate threat of death or serious injury or would seriously threaten the safety of the premises.”
Former NYPD officer turned Republican candidate slams 'ridiculous' claims after $120,000 settlements emerge over wrongful arrests
Councilwoman Sandy Nurse introduced the bill at Thursday's city council meeting. (Getty Images)
But the city's corrections officers union warns that the bill puts both corrections officers and inmates at risk, with the group's president, Benny Boscio, telling the New York Post that using chemical agents “actually makes it less likely that inmates and officers will suffer serious injuries than if physical force were used instead.”
“We invite Councilwoman Nurse and any other councilmember who supports this reckless legislation to spend a full day with us in a housing area with gang-affiliated inmates and see if they still believe our officers' hands should be tied when using chemical agents,” Boscio told the outlet.
Boscio also explained that Nurse attended a criminal justice committee hearing in September 2022 in which female corrections officers recounted their experiences of sexual assault.
She said the nurse “should be well aware that chemical agents are only used in emergency situations and must be used immediately to save the lives of anyone in our prisons who is being attacked by aggressive inmates.”
“The bill will only endanger correctional officers, so I'm very confident it will pass the City Council,” Republican Minority Leader Joe Borelli quipped to the New York Post.
The legislation was introduced after a city jail oversight board released a report in February criticizing the New York City Department of Corrections' “excessive reliance on chemical agents.”
NYC MAYOR BLOCKS LAW LIMITING SOLITARY CONFINEMENT
Pepper spray being packaged at the Ballistol factory in Aham, Germany, March 2, 2016. (Getty Images)
The Board of Corrections found there were 2,972 pepper spray “incidents” in city jails during the first 10 months of 2023, an increase of nearly 50% over the first 10 months of 2018.
The board also noted 24 examples in October in which prison officials used pepper spray on mentally ill inmates without first consulting mental health staff, as required.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The report also cited eight instances that same month when officers used pepper spray on inmates attempting to hang themselves rather than first cutting or removing ropes or other restraints.
This comes after the City Council passed a bill in December to severely limit the use of solitary confinement in prisons, though Democratic Mayor Eric Adams signed an emergency executive order last month blocking major parts of the measure shortly before it was set to take effect.
