The Latest: Bomb threat at federal jail where power failed
NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on a power failure at a federal detention center in New York City (all times local):
3:30 p.m.
Normal operations have resumed after a bomb threat at a federal detention center in New York City where a weeklong power outage left inmates shivering and led to a lawsuit.
Visitors and contractors were escorted out of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn as a precaution after the threat was called into the facility around 10:25 a.m. Monday.
The New York Police Department assisted prison workers in searching for potential devices. Officers ordered protesters and reporters to move away from the front of the facility as a precaution.
Police and the Bureau of Prisons say no devices were found and no credible threat was identified. The facility has resumed operations.
The NYPD is investigating the source of the threat.
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11:30 a.m.
A lawsuit brought by lawyers for inmates at a federal detention center in New York City calls a power failure that occurred there a “humanitarian crisis.”
The lawsuit was filed Monday in Brooklyn federal court by the Federal Defenders of New York.
A message was left with the U.S. Justice Department seeking comment.
The lawsuit alleges that the Federal Bureau of Prisons violated the constitutional rights of about 1,600 inmates by denying legal visits after a Jan. 27 fire caused the failure.
Protesters gathered outside after news reports that inmates had largely been without heat or power for a week.
The lawsuit says the outage caused “inhumane” conditions for inmates and the response was “woefully inadequate.”
It calls for the appointment of a special master to inspect the lockup.
