What happened to Robert Brooks? Fatal attack on inmate caught on camera

NEW YORK – New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has ordered the firing of more than a dozen employees, including a nurse, at the Marcy Correctional Facility in Oneida County after a fatal attack on an inmate was caught on a body-worn camera.

Attorney General Letitia James, who is investigating the incident, released footage Friday showing 43-year-old Robert Brooks being fatally beaten. “Like all New Yorkers, I was outraged and horrified after watching footage of the senseless murder of Robert Brooks,” Hochul said in a statement.

“These videos are shocking and disturbing and I advise everyone to exercise appropriate caution before deciding to watch them,” James said.

Footage released Friday shows correctional officers repeatedly punching Brooks in the face and groin as he sits handcuffed on a medical examination table.

When one of the police officers hits Brooks in the stomach with a shoe, another pulls him up by the neck and lets him fall back onto the table. The officers then remove the man’s shirt and pants while he lies motionless and covered in blood on his back.

MARCY, NY – DECEMBER 19: Barbed wire surrounds the Marcy Correctional Facility state prison on Route 88 on Thursday, December 19, 2024 in Marcy, NY (Will Waldron/Albany Times Union via Getty Images)

The final results of Brooks’ autopsy are pending.

Preliminary results of a medical examination indicate that “there is concern of asphyxia due to compression of the neck as the cause of death and that the death was due to the actions of another person,” according to court documents.

The videos do not contain sound because the body cameras were not activated by the officers wearing them.

James said her office is investigating the use of force that led to Brooks’ death, but did not say whether any of the officers would be charged with crimes.

With the release of the videos, “the public can now see for themselves the horrific and extreme nature of the fatal attack on Robert L. Brooks,” said Elizabeth Mazur, an attorney for his family.

“As viewers can see, Mr. Brooks was fatally and brutally beaten by a group of officers whose job it was to ensure his safety,” Mazur said. “He deserves to live, and every other resident of Marcy Correctional Facility deserves to know that they do not have to live in fear of violence at the hands of prison staff.”

The state correctional officers union, which viewed footage of the attack before releasing it, said in a statement: “What we saw is incomprehensible to say the least and certainly does not reflect the great work that the vast majority of our members are doing. ” daily.”

“This incident not only puts our entire membership at risk, but also undermines the integrity of our profession. We cannot and will not tolerate this behavior,” said the union, the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association.

Brooks had been serving a 12-year sentence for first-degree assault since 2017. He had arrived at the Marcy Correctional Facility just hours before the beating, after being transferred from another nearby state prison, officials said.

Marcy is located approximately 200 miles (323 kilometers) northwest of New York City, between the cities of Rome and Utica.

The Correctional Association of New York, a prison watchdog group, said it documented reports of pervasive brutality and racism at Marcy Correctional Facility during a monitoring visit two years ago.

Tina Luongo, chief counsel for the Legal Aid Society in New York City, called for “complete transparency” about the use of force by state corrections personnel and a “full investigation into this tragedy.”

“Like everyone who saw this video, we are horrified, angry and deeply saddened,” Luongo said, calling the attack on Brooks “a grotesque display of inhumanity that is absolutely horrific.”

“Too often, the violence that occurs behind prison walls remains hidden or becomes commonplace in the public eye once the headlines fade,” said Luongo, whose organization provides public defender services and has clients in state prisons.

What happened?

On Dec. 9, Brooks was transferred from the Mohawk Correctional Facility to the Marcy Correctional Facility, both in Oneida County.

After he was handcuffed and taken to a medical examination room, the attack occurred.

Brooks was later taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead in the early morning hours of December 10th.