Seventeen Department of Correction staff members have been disciplined after an investigation into the death of inmate Layleen Polanco on Rikers Island last year, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Friday.

“The death of Layleen Polanco was an incredibly painful moment for our city,” de Blasio said in a statement. “What happened to Layleen was absolutely unacceptable and it is critical that there is accountability.”

In June 2019, Polanco, a 27-year-old transgender woman, was found unresponsive in her cell on Rikers Island. The city's medical examiner ruled she died of an epileptic episode.

Three correction officers and one captain are among the 17 disciplined and will be suspended without pay immediately, the city said. It's not clear as of this writing what are the positions of the other Department of Correction staff members, or how they are being reprimanded. Their identities were also not released.

It's not clear if the Department of Correction staff will be disciplined further.

"We are committed to ensuring that all of our facilities are safe and humane. Even one death in our custody is one too many and this swift and fair determination on internal discipline makes clear that the safety and well-being of people in our custody remains our top priority,” Department of Correction Commissioner Cynthia Brann said in a statement.

Footage showed guards tried to wake Polanco for approximately an hour and a half before calling for help. Her family said the footage taken from a surveillance camera shows that Rikers staff failed to provide her with medical care that could have saved her life.

Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark declined to file any criminal charges following her office's own six-month investigation into the circumstances surrounding Polanco’s death.

The Corrections Officers Benevolent Association, the union for correction officers, hammered the city's decision Friday to discipline the staffers.

“These suspensions represent an egregious abuse of power that is unprecedented," said Michael Skelly. "Our members are being thrown rown under the bus when even the Bronx District Attorney found they did nothing wrong. If there is anyone who should be held responsible for the death of Layleen Polanco it’s Commissioner Brann and her inept managers. We will vigorously fight these suspensions and refuse to allow this city to demonize Correction Officers. This is a disgrace!”