Who is Robert Brooks? What to know if Letitia James releases bodycam video

New York Attorney General Letitia James on Friday released body camera footage from four correctional officers as part of an investigation into the fatal beating of Robert Brooks at an upstate prison earlier this month.

Newsweek emailed the prison, Marcy Correctional Facility and the New York Attorney General’s Office on Friday seeking comment.

Why it matters

Brooks, 43, died Dec. 10, the morning after he was assaulted by correctional officers at the Oneida County Jail. Body camera footage shows him handcuffed to a medical examination table as officers aggressively kick and punch him. Brooks’ face is bleeding in the footage.

The video footage and Brooks’ death sparked a public outcry.

What you should know

Brooks arrived at Marcy Correctional Facility on Dec. 9 after being transferred from the nearby Mohawk Correctional Facility. Hours later, he was handcuffed and taken to the medical examination room and beaten by prison officials.

He was then “transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead in the early morning hours of December 10,” the New York Attorney General’s Office said in Friday’s statement.

Over a dozen officers were in the room. Four of the officers involved were wearing body cameras but did not activate them, which is why there is no sound in the video footage, according to James. The footage does not show Brooks provoking or physically reacting to the punches directed at him.

Last week, before the release of the footage, New York Governor Kathy Hochul called on Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) Commissioner Daniel Martuscello to “initiate the termination process for the 14 individuals involved in his fatal death.” “We were involved in the attack.”

One employee has since resigned and the 13 others have been suspended without pay, Martuscello confirmed in a statement Newsweek.

Preliminary results from an autopsy by the Onondaga County Medical Examiner’s Office show that “there is concern for asphyxia due to compression of the neck as the cause of death and that death was due to the actions of another person,” according to a court filing.

Newsweek emailed the Onondaga County Health Department on Friday seeking comment.

Brooks was more than halfway through his 12-year sentence for first-degree assault, the Associated Press reported. In 2016, Brooks pleaded guilty to first-degree assault in connection with the stabbing attack on his girlfriend Diana Rivera in April of that year.

Brooks has a mother who was informed of his violent death by Martuscello on December 15, it has been confirmed Newsweek in an email.

What people say

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said in a statement on Friday: “Like all New Yorkers, I was outraged and horrified after watching footage of the senseless murder of Robert Brooks…I ordered an immediate and comprehensive investigation into Robert Brooks’ death and also directed DOCCS Commissioner Martuscello to begin termination proceedings.” the 14 people involved in his fatal attack.

Martuscello said in a statement shared with Newsweek: “When I saw the video evidence of the killing of Robert Brook, I felt deeply repulsed and nauseated. There is no excuse and no rationalization for a vulgar, inhumane act that senselessly took a life. This type of behavior cannot be normalized, and I will not.” Allow it to remain within the DOCCS. It is not enough to simply condemn this terrible act and then return to the matter at hand. Institutional changes must follow, and we have already begun taking proactive steps to ensure that nothing like this can ever happen again in our facilities.

Jennifer Scaife, executive director of the Correctional Association of New York, said Monday before the footage was released: “The public will witness the brutality that the Correctional Association of New York has documented in prisons for nearly two centuries and in Marcy just two years ago. In July 2023, following our monitoring visit to Marcy, CANY released a report with findings and recommendations in October 2022. When surveyed, 80 percent of detainees reported witnessing or experiencing mistreatment by staff, and nearly 70 percent reported racial discrimination or bias .”

The New York branch of the American Civil Liberties Union told X (formerly Twitter) on Friday: “Marcy’s horrific culture of brutality and mistreatment of officers has been well documented for years – yet nothing has been done. It should not be a cold-blooded murder captured on film to awaken the culture of our leaders.” The brutality of officers in New York prisons must stop. His family and loved ones deserve justice and accountability.

New York State Senator Julia Salazar said on X Friday that the footage “shows unfathomable and deadly violence by correctional officers and DOCCS staff… It should not even be possible for this to happen in a New York state prison… Marcy Correctional Facility cannot remain open.”

What happens next

The Special Investigations Bureau in James’ office is investigating Brooks’ death. Further details are expected to be released once the official cause of death is announced.

The statement from James’ office said: “The release of this footage is not an expression of an opinion about the guilt or innocence of any party in a criminal matter or an opinion about how or whether a person can be charged with a crime.”