New York State Department of Law Special Investigation Files Relating to the Attica Uprising

This series consists of digital versions of documents compiled by the Attorney General's Office in response to the class action lawsuit filed against state officials or their estates in 1974 by inmate survivors of the Attica Correctional Facility uprising of 1971. Compiled at the request of the Governor, the bulk of the documents pertain to the case of Akil Al-Jundi, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, Plaintiffs vs. The Estate of Nelson A. Rockefeller, Russell Oswald, John Monahan, Vincent Mancusi and Karl Pfeil, Defendants. This case was eventually heard in United States District Court for the Western District of New York in 1991 and following federal appeals court reversals of jury verdicts rendered in 1992 and 1997, was ultimately settled in January of 2000. While the state failed to admit wrongdoing or liability for injuries sustained by inmates during the retaking of the facility, the plaintiffs were awarded $8 million in compensation. Records in the series include hearing transcripts, trial excerpts, exhibits, court filings, news articles, and other items documenting the prolonged legal action that resulted from the controversial decision to retake the facility by force.

The digitized documents that comprise this series are available in State Archives Digital Collections.

Series B1811, New York State Department of Law Attica Class Action Litigation Files, contains records compiled by attorneys for the defendants in the Al-Jundi case.

Series 11185, New York State Department of Law Special Investigation Files, contains records of other investigations conducted by the Attorney General's Office at the Governor's request.

The New York State Attorney General's Office selected and digitized the documents in this series for the purpose of creating an online digital collection in honor of the forty-fifth anniversary of the Attica uprising.

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of this material.