Rikers Island - Otis Bantum Correctional Center Inmate Bail & Bonds

Bail in New York City comes from a judge at arraignment, never from a precinct desk. The hearing takes place in the borough of arrest, most often about a day after the arrest. Here is each arraignment court, starting in the Bronx:

• The Bronx: Bronx Criminal Court, 215 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451, 718-618-2400. Arraignments 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., every day.
• Queens: Queens Criminal Court, 125-01 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, NY 11415, 718-298-0792. Every day 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., so Queens wraps up two hours before the others.
• Staten Island: Richmond County Criminal Court, 26 Central Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10301, 718-675-8558. Weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; weekend mornings 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Manhattan: New York County Criminal Court, 100 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013, 646-386-4511. 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., seven days.
• Brooklyn: Kings County Criminal Court, 120 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 347-404-9400. 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., seven days.

The hours before arraignment pass in NYPD custody at central booking, a holding area in the borough's criminal courthouse. Most men are moved there within about 4 to 6 hours of arrest, and no visits are allowed. Legal Aid lists these stations:

• Staten Island: Staten Island Central Booking, in the Staten Island Criminal Court, 26 Central Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10301, 718-876-8493.
• Brooklyn: Brooklyn Central Booking, 120 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 718-875-6319.
• The Bronx: Bronx Central Booking, 215 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451. Its calls go through the same Bronx court number shown above.
• Queens: Queens Central Booking, 125-01 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, NY 11415, 718-268-4523.
• Manhattan: Manhattan Central Booking, 100 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013, 212-347-2801.

One step saves a lot of waiting. Ask the booking desk for his arrest number. Read that number to the arraignment clerk for the same borough, and you will learn the time and the courtroom.

State law makes the judge look at his own facts, such as whether paying would be an undue hardship, and state the reasons (CPL 510.10(1)). Money bail is the exception. In 2024 it was set in just 15% of city arraignments, and 62% of people went home on their own promise, state figures show. If bail goes unpaid, DOC officers take him by bus from the court pens to the island. Every new male arrival is processed at the Eric M. Taylor Center, 10-10 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370, and a bed here may come next.

All adult jails in the five boroughs belong to the city Department of Correction (DOC). Housing is decided after intake, based on need, safety and space. In 2026 these are DOC's sites:

• Eric M. Taylor Center, 10-10 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370. Intake for all men. Some units are for mental observation.
• George R. Vierno Center, 09-09 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370. Men awaiting trial and men serving time. Some units watch mental health closely. PACE serves men with serious mental illness.
• Otis Bantum Correctional Center, 16-00 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370. Adult men in dorms and cells. It has mental observation housing and a Special Management Unit.
• Robert N. Davoren Complex, 11-11 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370. Men, among them young adults from 18 to 21.
• Rose M. Singer Center, 19-19 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370. Women, both detained and sentenced, plus women's intake. Its Special Considerations Unit serves transgender and intersex people, and people whose gender is non-binary or non-conforming.
• RESH (Enhanced Supervised Housing), 19-19 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370. Men in restrictive housing after being found guilty of a jail rule charge. It runs separate intake, medical and visiting spaces.
• West Facility, 16-06 Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370. One-person cells. Part of it is the Communicable Disease Unit.
• Bellevue Hospital Prison Ward, 462 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10016, and Elmhurst Hospital Prison Ward, 79-01 Broadway, Queens, NY 11370. Locked hospital wards for men whose illness needs inpatient care.
• Bellevue Outposted Therapeutic Housing Unit, 462 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10016. A 104-bed unit, open since April 2026, for complex medical cases below hospital level.
• Youth under 18 are sent to ACS, not DOC: Crossroads Juvenile Center, 17 Bristol Street, Brooklyn, NY 11212, 718-240-3800, or Horizon Juvenile Center, 560 Brook Avenue, Bronx, NY 10455, 718-292-0065.

Whatever the building, bail is paid the same way. The North Infirmary Command shut for good in June 2026. The Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens borough jails stopped housing people in 2022.

New York gives the judge four kinds of securing orders (CPL 500.10):

• Own promise. He leaves and returns for each date. On most misdemeanors and many non-violent felonies, the judge has to begin here (CPL 510.10(3)).
• Conditions. Check-ins or reminders, at no cost to him. A monitoring device is a last resort, ordered for 60 days at most before the judge looks again (CPL 510.40(4)).
• Bail. Only for a charge the law lists as qualifying.
• Remand. Jail without bail, reserved for qualifying felonies (CPL 510.10(4)).

Whenever bail is set, the judge must name at least three forms, including either an unsecured or a partially secured surety bond (CPL 520.10(2)(b)). The partially secured kind asks for a deposit capped at 10% of the bail (CPL 500.10(18)). When a case could stretch for months, that smaller deposit can be what gets him out. His lawyer can tell you which forms the judge wrote down.

A judge may also place him in the city's Supervised Release Program, managed by the Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice. This can happen at arraignment or at a later date, whatever the charge. The program gives reminders before court, a case manager, and links to treatment and housing.

Every judge in the state works from the same rulebook. You can read it in plain words on our New York bail rules page.

Bail amounts come from the judge, not from a chart. The judge weighs the charge, his record and his money before naming a figure. His exact amount appears on the Person in Custody Lookup, or the court clerk can read it to you. The law decides which charges can carry bail at all. Ten groups cover most cases:

1. Most misdemeanors and non-violent felonies: no money bail. He leaves on his promise or with conditions.
2. Violent felonies. Robbery, burglary and assault in the higher degrees are examples. Bail or remand is possible.
3. Any class A felony, or any charge claiming someone died.
4. Family cases: violating a family member's order of protection, or choking or unlawfully confining a relative.
5. Scaring or tampering with a witness.
6. Listed sex felonies, sex trafficking, and certain sex misdemeanors.
7. Weapons: third-degree criminal possession, or a gun sale to someone under 18.
8. Hate crime charges of third-degree assault or arson.
9. Jumping bail, escaping, or a new felony while he is on probation or parole-type supervision.
10. A new felony or class A misdemeanor causing harm to people or property, charged while he is free on a similar open case.

A charge on this list does not force bail; the judge can still release him. When bail is set, hardship to him must be part of the math (CPL 510.10(1)).

DOC takes bail in person at any of its bail sites, no matter which jail houses him. On the island itself, the Central Cashier does it. Follow these steps:

1. Pull up his record on the Person in Custody Lookup and write down his Book and Case number or NYSID. A 311 operator can give them too.
2. Carry a photo ID of your own.
3. Have the exact total. Cash, money orders capped at $1,000 apiece, a cashier's or teller's check, and debit or credit cards are fine, alone or together. DOC hands back no change.
4. Go to the Central Cashier, out on Rikers Island in East Elmhurst. It never closes, holidays included.
5. Guard the receipt. You will need it when the refund comes after the case.

The second all-night choice is the Manhattan Detention Complex, 125 White Street, New York, NY 10013. Nobody is housed there now, yet the bail window never shuts. The lookup usually reflects a release within about 15 minutes. With questions, try DOC's Office of Constituent and Grievance Services, 718-546-1500, open weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Three courthouses also have DOC bail windows. DOC lists none on Staten Island. By borough:

• Brooklyn: 120 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, first-floor Room 101C. Daily, 8:30 a.m. to 1 a.m.
• Manhattan: the Manhattan Detention Complex, 125 White Street, New York, NY 10013. Open 24 hours.
• The Bronx: downstairs in the criminal courthouse at 215 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451, Room M-05C. Mondays and Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.; shut Saturday and Sunday.
• Queens: the Ground Floor of the Queens courts at 126-01 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, NY 11415. Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Staten Island: no window here, so families use the White Street site or the island cashier. Both stay open all night.

A drawn-out case brings many court dates, and each is another chance to pay. On a day he is brought to court, tell the clerk of that courtroom's part that you want to post bail. For Manhattan felonies, bail services sit with the Supreme Court's Central Clerk's Office, Room 1000, 100 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013, 646-386-4000. Partially secured bail gets help at the Ancillary Clerk's Office, Room 927, 111 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013, 646-386-4300.

DOC is strict about payment, and one wrong check can mean a wasted trip. It takes:

• U.S. bills and coins adding up to the exact bail.
• Cashier's or teller's checks that are not more than the bail.
• Money orders bought from the Postal Service, FedEx, Western Union, Travelers Express or a private bank.
• Debit and credit cards.
• A combination, if the sum matches the bail to the penny.

Write "New York City Department of Correction" as the payee on every check and money order. DOC refuses personal checks (certified ones too), any one check or money order above $1,000, payments that would need change, and every other method. Carry your ID and his jail numbers. Families who save a little each week can buy money orders of $1,000 or less until they reach the total.

A bondsman can only help when the judge listed a surety bond as one choice. Every agent needs a state license, which DFS (the Department of Financial Services) issues. Before signing, look the agent up with the state's bail agent license search.

Insurance Law § 6804 limits what the agent may charge as a premium:

• up to 10% on the first $3,000;
• up to 8% on the slice from $3,000 to $10,000;
• up to 6% on whatever is above $10,000.

Agents usually keep the premium. Per DFS, the full premium can come back within 14 days when he never gets out, or when he is freed without money bail. Keep collateral small; about 10% of the bond is a fair guide. When the case is over and the bond is discharged, it must be returned within 45 days. Get a written, signed record of every payment. Nonprofit bail funds may pay cash bail too. Ask to see the fund's DFS certificate. File complaints on the DFS complaint page.

Paying does not always mean he walks out within the hour. Usual causes of a wait:

• Bail on a second open case is still unpaid.
• A different court, or state parole, has a warrant for him.
• ICE sent DOC a detainer. City law sharply limits when DOC may honor one.
• DOC has not finished the release paperwork.

Look at the Person in Custody Lookup first; releases tend to show up there within about 15 minutes. DOC's constituent and grievance office, 718-546-1500, can tell you what is keeping him (weekdays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.). His defense lawyer can search for other cases or warrants. At night and on weekends, 311 takes questions and complaints about people in DOC custody.

Remand leaves no amount he can pay to go home. The law allows it only on a qualifying felony (CPL 510.10(4)), and city judges used it in about 1% of 2024 arraignments. Prosecutors ask for bail or remand, and the defense pushes for release. These are the five DA offices:

• Queens: 125-01 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, NY 11415, 718-286-6000.
• Manhattan: 1 Hogan Place, New York, NY 10013, 212-335-9000.
• Brooklyn: 350 Jay Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201; DA's Action Center 718-250-2340.
• Staten Island: 130 Stuyvesant Place, Staten Island, NY 10301, 718-876-6300.
• The Bronx: 198 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451, 718-590-2000.

If a Criminal Court judge orders remand, he gets one chance to have a Supreme Court judge in that borough review it (CPL 530.30). His lawyer picks the moment.

Yes. The bail set on the first night can change as the case goes on. His lawyer can use these tools:

• Bail review. With the case still in Criminal Court, he may ask a Supreme Court judge in his borough to cut the bail or free him. The law allows a single request, so pick the time with care (CPL 530.30).
• Nominal bail. He may ask for a token amount of bail, and the court has to grant a voluntary request (CPL 510.10(5)). This can matter when another case or hold is in play.
• The 120-hour limit. If a felony complaint gets no grand jury vote and no hearing in 120 hours, he must be let go on his promise. With a weekend or holiday in the middle, the limit becomes 144 hours. Delay he causes or accepts does not count, and other exceptions exist (CPL 180.80).
• The 90-day limit. Prosecutors who are not ready for a felony trial within 90 days of his jailing must see him released on bail or his promise (CPL 30.30(2)).
• Supervised release. The judge can be asked to switch him to the city's Supervised Release Program.

His lawyer knows which of these fits and when. To learn the next date and courtroom part, phone the Criminal Court Information Line, 646-386-4900, weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Bail can move at nearly any court date, even late in a case. A family with money and papers ready can act that same day:

• Watch his next date on WebCrims or the Person in Custody Lookup, then ask his lawyer after every date if bail changed.
• Keep his NYSID and Book and Case numbers written on paper, kept with your photo ID.
• Set money aside in a form DOC accepts, such as money orders of $1,000 or less payable to "New York City Department of Correction."
• Memorize where you can pay at 3 a.m.: the island's own cashier window, or the Manhattan Detention Complex, 125 White Street, New York, NY 10013.
• Whoever pays cash bail stays its owner, unless a judge orders it forfeited (CPL 520.15).

Hand money only to a DOC bail site, a court clerk, or an agent whose state license you have checked. Hold on to every receipt until the refund arrives.

Any time bail is set or reviewed, he is entitled to a lawyer, assigned free if he cannot pay (CPL 510.10(2)). State standards treat being jailed as a strong sign that he qualifies, and the judge has the last word. Nonprofit defender offices cover arraignments:

• Manhattan: The Legal Aid Society, 49 Thomas Street, New York, NY 10013, 212-732-5000; New York County Defender Services, 100 William Street, Floor 20, New York, NY 10038, 212-803-5100; Neighborhood Defender Service, 317 Lenox Avenue, New York, NY 10027, 212-876-5500.
• Staten Island: The Legal Aid Society, 60 Bay Street, Staten Island, NY 10301, 347-422-5333.
• The Bronx: The Legal Aid Society, 260 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451, 718-579-3000; The Bronx Defenders, 360 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451, 718-838-7878.
• Brooklyn: The Legal Aid Society on the 9th floor of 111 Livingston Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 718-237-2000; Brooklyn Defender Services on the 7th floor of 177 Livingston Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 718-254-0700.
• Queens: The Legal Aid Society, 120-46 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, NY 11415, 718-286-2000; Queens Defenders, Suite 212 at 118-21 Queens Boulevard, Forest Hills, NY 11375, 844-783-3673.

When those groups have a conflict, the court turns to a private lawyer on the city's Assigned Counsel Plan. Get his lawyer's name and phone number at the first hearing. During a long wait, that lawyer is the one who can bring a bail review.

After a grand jury indictment, a felony goes up to the Supreme Court, Criminal Term. For a man held on Rikers, most of the slow middle of a case happens in these buildings:

• Staten Island: Richmond County Supreme Court, 26 Central Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10301. Criminal Term Office in Room 240, 718-675-8760.
• Brooklyn: Kings County Supreme Court, Criminal Term, 320 Jay Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 347-296-1076. Hours 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Queens: Queens Supreme Court, Criminal Term, 125-01 Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, NY 11415. Hours 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Record Room 718-298-1400.
• The Bronx: Bronx County Supreme Court, Criminal, Hall of Justice, 265 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451, 718-618-3100.
• Manhattan: Supreme Court, Criminal Term, 100 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013, 646-386-4000, and 111 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013, 646-386-4300.

Some cases go to two Criminal Court branches instead: the Midtown Community Justice Center, 314 West 54th Street, New York, NY 10019, 646-264-1330, and the Red Hook Community Justice Center, 88-94 Visitation Place, Brooklyn, NY 11231, 718-923-8200.

Cash bail is returned to the payer once the case ends. A judge's refund order usually goes out around six weeks after the final date. Then the Department of Finance (DOF) mails a check, often two weeks later. Plan on about two months in all. Nothing has to be filed.

Unless the case ends in dismissal or acquittal, DOF keeps 3% (General Municipal Law § 99-m). For a late check, phone the DOF Cash Bail Unit at 212-908-7619 (weekdays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.), or bring photo ID to the 2nd floor of 66 John Street, New York, NY 10038, weekdays 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Have ready the docket or indictment number, his name, your payment date, the borough and the amount. Only the payer may ask, unless they sign a notarized letter naming someone else.

If he skips court with no valid reason, the bail can be lost (CPL 540.10). Coming back and explaining may undo that, if the judge is satisfied. Otherwise, the payer gets one year to apply for the money back (CPL 540.30). Over a long case, keep every date in front of him.

When a man leaves Rikers, his valuables wait for him at the Samuel L. Perry Center, which runs 24 hours with no appointment. Larger property, like bags of clothes, is released by appointment set through 311. He has 30 days after release to make that call, using his jail numbers. Three business days later, items can be collected from noon, for a three-day stretch.

A relative may collect his things. If he is still locked up, he fills out a release form naming you. If he is home, a notarized letter does the job. Call the Property Pick-up Area at 718-546-8811. To learn how leftover money in his jail account is returned, ask DOC's constituent office at 718-546-1500.

Federal cases skip DOC entirely. A federal judge decides release under 18 U.S.C. 3142, normally at a detention hearing during his first appearance. The hearing can be put off a few days: up to five on a defense request, or three for the government, skipping weekends and holidays. The judge weighs the crime charged, the evidence, his background, his ties and any risk to others.

• Manhattan and Bronx cases belong to the Southern District, whose main courthouse is 500 Pearl Street, New York, NY 10007, Clerk's Office 212-805-0136.
• Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island cases belong to the Eastern District, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 718-613-2600.

Before trial, federal prisoners are in Marshals Service custody. Its Southern District office is in Suite 400 at 500 Pearl Street, New York, NY 10007, 646-563-9800. Its Eastern District office is in Room G20S at 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, NY 11201, 718-473-3000. MDC Brooklyn, 80 29th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232, 718-840-4200, houses people both before and after sentencing. Once he is in prison, the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator will list him.

Bail answers the criminal court, not immigration. Through Form I-247A, ICE can send a detainer asking the jail to hold a person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released, giving ICE time to collect him (8 CFR 287.7(d)). If ICE takes custody, look for him on the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

State and city rules matter a great deal in New York City:

• People ex rel. Wells v. DeMarco (2018): an appeals court found that New York gives its officers no legal power over civil immigration arrests.
• The city's detainer laws (Administrative Code § 9-131): DOC may help ICE only with someone who has a conviction from a list of serious or violent crimes, or someone who may match a terrorist screening list. Local Laws 58 and 59 (2014) name those crimes.
• Local Law 228 of 2017: no city workers or city property may be put to work enforcing federal immigration law.
• Civil Rights Law § 28: a trip to or from a courthouse, and time spent inside, is protected from civil arrest. A judge can lift that shield with a signed warrant or order.
• Executive Law § 170-k: from August 25, 2026, no local agency in New York may keep a 287(g) agreement.

To ask about a detainer, reach ICE's city field office on the 9th floor at 26 Federal Plaza, Suite 9-110, New York, NY 10278, 212-436-9315.

Short terms, like a class A misdemeanor's limit of 364 days, can be served with DOC, because several Rikers jails hold sentenced men. Longer felony sentences go to state prison under the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). Once the city marks him state-ready, DOCCS must pick him up within ten business days. At intake, DOCCS assigns a DIN (his state ID number). Workers check his records and his health, then rate his security level. A matching prison follows.

Track him on the DOCCS Incarcerated Lookup; a DIN works best, and a last name plus year of birth also works. Weekday callers can reach DOCCS at 518-457-5000. Every state prison has its own details on our New York state prisons page.

No. Nobody under 18 is held at OBCC or anywhere else on Rikers. Raise the Age sends felony charges against teens of 16 and 17 to the Youth Part, inside Supreme Court. Many of them are then transferred to Family Court. A child under 16 goes straight to Family Court, and delinquency cases there have no bail.

Two ACS youth centers hold teens when bail is set. ACS collects their bail, and both centers accept it day or night:

• Crossroads Juvenile Center, 17 Bristol Street, Brooklyn, NY 11212, 718-240-3800.
• Horizon Juvenile Center, 560 Brook Avenue, Bronx, NY 10455, 718-292-0065.

When officers take a child into custody, the law requires them to notify a parent right away (Family Court Act § 305.2).