Around this time, the Attica Prison riot broke out. Rothenberg was included on the prisoners' shortlist for civilian observers. This prompted Arthur Eve's office to call on him and recruit him for that role. He was among the three dozen men called in to Attica as observers. The group unanimously agreed to send a smaller delegation to represent observers. The delegation included William Kunstler, Tom Wicker of "The New York Times", congressman Herman Badillo and state senator John R. Dunne, who returned to New York to plead with governor Nelson Rockefeller, only to find he had ordered troops to take over the prison. The takeover was violent and there were many casualties. After the dust settled, four prisoners' bodies remained unclaimed. The Fortune Society made arrangements for these men to receive proper funerals.