Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Every Night Is Ladies Night At Rikers Island
By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 20, 2011
Modified Mar 20, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 20, 2011
Modified Mar 20, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
There are many, many things Rikers is not good for: you can't get a vegan meal, it's bad for your sleep schedule, and danger lurks around every corner for thumbs. But there is one thing Rikers is good for: hookups between lonely female guards and eligible inmates.
Former guard Yolanda Dickinson, who worked at Rikers from 1997 to 2004, has written a novel called "Taboo," based on the jail's alleged out-of-control, soap-opera-esque sex scene. "They would do it on the midnight shift when there were not many people around. They have electronic cell doors, and it's not a problem for someone to crack open the door," she told the Post. With 3,890 female officers guarding some 12,000 men, Dickinson says hook-ups are inevitable: "There are a lot of lonely single women on the job, and you're surrounded by these cute guys. They're working out. They're attractive...They're criminals, so they have a cunning way of approaching you. They study you all day."
And she should know, since she has had her fair share of dalliances with prisoners: she admits that she met a Rikers inmate on her watch, a gang member from her neighborhood who had admitted to killing a rapist; also, the father of her 17-year-old son served 10 years in federal prison on drug charges. She was eventually fired for "undue familiarity" in 2004, after an inmate called her from Rikers.
The Post notes that at least six female guards have been fired or forced out for such relationships: that includes Kimberly Hurd, who bore an inmate's love child; Yolanda Turner-Goodwin, who was photographed hugging and kissing a prisoner; Kadessha Mulgrav, who allegedly sneaked away for a midnight liaison with an inmate in the shower room; and Doreen Baker, who was called more than 170 times by her inmate lover.
Tagged
guards
inmates
liasons
rikers
Rikers Island
sex
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
NYC early voting dips compared to 2025, but spikes in majority-Black districts
Mayor Mamdani's robust support for Gov. Hochul couldn’t quite match the level of early voting in 2025.
By
Brigid Bergin
and
Joe Hong
Published Nov 2, 2026 at 6:06 p.m. ET
NYPD officers shoot man after exchange of gunfire outside Bronx deli, police say
Police say the man threatened people inside a deli before exchanging gunfire with officers. He is expected to survive.
By
Giulia Heyward
News
NYPD officers shoot man after exchange of gunfire outside Bronx deli, police say
Police say the man threatened people inside a deli before exchanging gunfire with officers. He is expected to survive.
By
Giulia Heyward
Washington Square Park snowball thrower gets community service for pelting NYPD
By
Walter Wuthmann
Stabbing of Brooklyn runner believed to be ‘random attack,’ NYPD says
By
Ben Feuerherd
NYPD wants info from schools after 15-year-old Bronx boy shot and killed
By
Charles Lane
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .