layleen polanco
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Family of Layleen Polanco Reaches History-Making $5.9 Million Settlement Over Solitary Confinement Death
The family of Layleen Polanco, a trans-Afro-Latina who died while in solitary confinement at Rikers Island jail last year, will receive a historic $5.9 million settlement—the largest New York City has ever paid out for a death in one of its city jails. In a statement to The City, family attorney David Shanies said the…
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Spurred by the 2019 Death of Layleen Polanco, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio Moves to End Solitary Confinement in City Jails
A year after trans Afro-Latina Layleen Xtravaganza Polanco died while imprisoned in solitary confinement at Rikers Island, New York City Bill de Blasio has vowed to end the practice “once and for all.” The mayor made the announcement during his Monday briefing, invoking Polanco’s name as well as that of Kalief Browder, the young Black…
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![New Report on Layleen Xtravaganza Polanco's Death Highlights the Cruelty of NYC Jails' Policies Toward Trans People [Corrected]](https://www.theroot.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/cfwv1qgm0ku5ag3yxyyw-300x200.jpg)
New Report on Layleen Xtravaganza Polanco's Death Highlights the Cruelty of NYC Jails' Policies Toward Trans People [Corrected]
Layleen Xtravaganza Cubilette-Polanco should not have been in solitary confinement at Rikers Island. But the 27-year-old transgender woman was pushed into this part of the infamous New York City jail last year, despite a doctor’s objections and a documented seizure disorder. She would end up dying after nine days in solitary, suffering a seizure alone…
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Activists Demand Justice for Layleen Polanco, a Black Trans Woman Found Dead in a Rikers Island Jail Cell
A 27-year-old black trans woman, Layleen Polanco, also known as Layleen Xtravaganza, was found dead in her jail cell on Rikers Island last week, and the LGBTQ community and her family plan to rally today to demand justice in her name. Polanco was arrested in mid-April for allegedly assaulting a cab driver in Harlem and…