Bodycam footage released on Friday reveals correctional officers at Marcy Correctional Facility in New York assaulting a handcuffed inmate, Robert Brooks, shortly before his death. The 43-year-old prisoner was declared dead at a hospital on December 10, a day after the incident.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has launched an investigation into the December 9 incident, making the footage public. Following an internal review, New York Governor Kathy Hochul ordered the dismissal of 13 officers and a prison nurse allegedly involved in the assault.
Newly released body cam footage shows New York correctional officers smiling as they beat a man in handcuffs to death pic.twitter.com/9Y3DR7HRsl
— HOT SPOT (@HotSpot__Media) December 28, 2024
“I am outraged and horrified by the videos of Brooks’ senseless killing,” Hochul stated.
The union representing state prison workers condemned the footage as “incomprehensible.”
Brutal Assault Caught on Camera
The footage, although silent due to officers not activating bodycam audio, shows:
- Officers struck Brooks in the face and groin while handcuffed.
- An officer used a shoe to hit him in the stomach.
- Another officer lifted Brooks by the neck and dropped him onto a medical examination table.
The officers stripped Brooks of his shirt and pants, leaving him motionless. One officer appeared to place an object into his mouth before continuing the assault.
NEW: Body-cam footage released showing New York correctional officers smirking as they "fatally beat" a man in handcuffs.
Sickening.
43-year-old Robert Brooks passed away on Dec 10 at Wynn Hospital in Utica, NY.
The New York Attorney General’s Office of Special Investigations… pic.twitter.com/BwLPnOS9fH
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 27, 2024Preliminary medical findings suggest asphyxia due to neck compression as the cause of death. The death is attributed to the actions of another person, pending final post-mortem results.
Brooks had been serving a 12-year prison sentence since 2017 for first-degree assault. He arrived at the Marcy Correctional Facility just hours before the assault, transferred from a nearby state prison.
