NY Judges to Visit Jails Each Year to Understand Sentencing Impact

Starting in 2028, all New York Judges who are involved in sentencing or detention decisions will be required to visit incarcerated individuals, including juveniles, at prisons and jails at least once per year.

The new amendment, announced June 15 as an amendment to the Rules of the Chief Judge in NY State’s Unified Court System, makes New York the first state in the U.S. to mandate visits of this kind, which hopes to improve communication and understanding between correction systems and the judicial branch.

In their yearly visit, judges in NY Family and Criminal courts will spend ‘meaningful time’ in different detention facilities, including housing, recreation, and medical facilities. They will also be encouraged to meet with incarcerated individuals, family members of incarcerated individuals, and facilities employees during their visits.

Judges will not be allowed to revisit the same facility each year and will rotate between state prisons, local jails, and youth and women’s facilities to experience and understand the different situations of correctional confinement within the state.

Rowan D. Wilson, Chief Judge of the State of New York and the New York Court of Appeals, said the new rule will ensure that judges fully understand how their sentences affect incarcerated individuals and their communities.

“This rule keeps judges better connected to what transpires after sentencing. It deepens a judge’s firsthand understanding of prison conditions and the broad impact of incarceration on individuals, families, and communities, as well as the opportunities available during incarceration,” Wilson said in the June 15 statement. “The revised rule embodies the principle that judges are not distant arbiters but engaged stewards of justice, whose thoughtful determinations are grounded in reality.”

“By doing so, it promotes confidence in the judiciary, not merely in those who are incarcerated or their families, but also in the public at large,” Wilson added.

Joseph A. Zayas, Chief Administrative Judge of the New York State Unified Court System, said the mandated visits will be mutually beneficial for both sides of the sentencing process.

“The new Part 17 seeks to create an impactful program of engagement between judges and incarcerated individuals, as well as the employees, administrators, and service providers working in New York’s jails and prisons,” Zayas stated. “Through consistent, immersive visits, judges will be kept abreast of facility conditions and challenges and, in turn, promote transparency and public trust in our courts and criminal justice system.”

The amendments to Part 17 were first proposed by the Advisory Committee on Criminal Law and Procedure in September 2025 after years of studies conducted by the court system’s Advisory Committee on Criminal Law and Procedure, according to the June 15 press release. After public feedback and commentary, which was primarily positive and in support of the rule, the amendment was then approved in May 2026.

Looking ahead to its January 2028 implementation, NY Courts will plan to carry out a Judicial orientation and education program to support the mandated visitations, as well as establish as advisory task force with incarceration experts to further explore ways to enhance Judicial education and training in NY.