Boston City Council Calls for Independent Investigation Into Jacoby Kinney In-Custody Death

BOSTON — April 29, 2026 — Boston City Council calls for independent probe of in-custody death, approves $32.6 million in preservation funds. The council voted 10 in the affirmative April 29 to call for an independent investigation into the December 2025 death of Jacoby Kinney at the Suffolk County House of Correction, where more than 20 in-custody deaths have occurred over five years. Councillor Tania Fernandes Anderson Culpepper, lead sponsor of the resolution, argued that nearly six months had passed with no confirmed cause of death and no public update on the investigation. A companion resolution calling for the temporary paid administrative suspension of correctional staff involved in the altercation failed 6-to-3, with two present, after Councillor Sharon Durkin cited Section 17G of the city charter prohibiting council involvement in the employment of county employees. The council also approved landmark designation for the 1912 Copley Plaza Hotel on a 12-to-zero roll call — one day before automatic designation would have taken effect — and passed a $32.6 million FY26 Community Preservation Fund appropriation covering 42 projects, including more than $16 million for affordable housing. A tenant protection ordinance raising rental registration fees and changing non-compliance penalties from $300 per month to $300 per day was referred to the Government Operations Committee by lead sponsors Councillor Gabriela Coletta Zapata and Councillor Benjamin Weber.