By Michele Evans / NYweeklyRecord.com / Date: 9/10/2026
Category: Rikers Island / Criminal Courts / Jail Health / Public Safety
NEW YORK CITY, NY –
A 66-year-old Manhattan woman accused of stabbing the home health aide assigned to care for her says Rikers Island is failing to provide the medical treatment she needs while she awaits trial.
Barbara Salberg pleaded not guilty on Sept. 9 in Manhattan Supreme Court to attempted second-degree murder and attempted first-degree assault. Prosecutors allege that she stabbed her 54-year-old home health aide in the abdomen on Aug. 8 after an argument over an oxygen mask.
The aide is the person at the center of the criminal case. She was allegedly attacked while performing work meant to help Salberg manage serious health problems. Her name and current medical condition were not included in the available court report.
Salberg is presumed innocent unless and until prosecutors prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.
Defense attorney Toni Messina told the court that Salberg has dementia, lung disease and a blood disorder, uses a wheelchair and depends on oxygen. Messina said Salberg is not receiving the care she needs at Rikers and argued that relatives could care for her safely at home. The defense asked for home detention instead of continued jail custody.
Assistant District Attorney Kaleigh Shea described the attack as intentional and premeditated and asked Judge Cori Weston to raise bail to $200,000. According to the prosecution, Salberg threatened the aide before the stabbing and insulted her afterward. Those claims are allegations that have not been proven at trial.
Weston kept bail at $100,000. The judge said she would consider home confinement with electronic monitoring later, leaving Salberg in city custody for now. The next court date is Dec. 16. Salberg faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted.
The decision leaves two public-safety duties in tension. The court must account for the severity of an alleged knife attack and the safety of the injured aide. At the same time, the city has a legal and operational duty to provide adequate care to people it confines, including detainees with serious disabilities and chronic illnesses.
New York City jail standards require timely access to health services and accommodations for people with disabilities. The available report does not establish what treatment Salberg has requested, what care Rikers clinicians have provided, or whether jail medical staff dispute the defense account.
Those unanswered questions matter. If Salberg is medically unstable, officials should be able to explain how her oxygen, medications, mobility needs and cognitive condition are being managed. If the defense claim is inaccurate or incomplete, the city should have records showing that appropriate care is available and delivered.
Home confinement would not decide guilt or erase the allegations. It would change where Salberg is held while the case proceeds. Any release plan would need enforceable conditions that protect the aide, the public and the integrity of the court process.
The case now puts the court, prosecutors, defense lawyers and jail officials under scrutiny. The injured aide deserves a process that takes the alleged violence seriously. Salberg is also entitled to the presumption of innocence and medically appropriate treatment while detained.
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