Body-worn camera footage released Friday shows correctional officers at Marcy Correctional Facility in upstate New York punching and kicking a handcuffed inmate during a fatal beating. This is now being investigated by the New York Attorney General.
Robert Brooks was pronounced dead at Wynn Hospital in Utica on December 10, according to Attorney General Letitia James. Brooks, 43, had been serving a 12-year prison sentence for first-degree assault since 2017, according to prison documents.
CNN reviewed the footage, parts of which show surrounding officers kicking and punching Brooks, who has his hands cuffed behind his back in a medical exam room. Brooks' face looks bloody in some images.
At one point, an officer appears to put something in Brooks' mouth before repeatedly punching him in the face. Another officer then punches Brooks in the groin before using a shoe to strike him.
The New York Attorney General's Office of Special Investigations previously announced it had opened an investigation into Brooks' death.
Robert Brooks is seen in a photo from 2010. – Brooks family
“As attorney general, you have my word that we will use every tool at our disposal to thoroughly and expeditiously investigate this death,” James said Friday.
She said four of the officers involved were wearing body cameras but did not activate them, so the cameras did not record audio of the incident.
“These videos are shocking and disturbing, and I urge everyone to exercise caution before deciding to view them,” she said.
According to James, Brooks had been transferred from Mohawk Correctional Facility, another prison in Oneida County, to Marcy Correctional Facility on December 9.
Parts of the footage show Brooks, face down and his hands handcuffed behind his back, being carried into the building by three officers. It is unclear what led to Brooks being brought into the examination room.
Robert Brooks is seen after being beaten by correctional officers at the Marcy Correctional Facility. – NYS Attorney General
Video shows officers punching and kicking Brooks
The attorney general released eight videos from body-worn cameras of four different officers. Throughout most of the footage, Brooks is handcuffed with his hands behind his back as officers punch and kick him in the face, chest and groin.
Footage shows Brooks being carried into the facility in handcuffs and face down, with two officers holding his arms and one holding his feet. They take him to a medical exam room.
An officer appears to place a white substance in Brooks' mouth while another officer holds Brooks by the throat. The officer then repeatedly punches Brooks in the face, and another officer begins punching him in the groin. An officer is seen hitting Brooks with a shoe.
Two corrections officers then pull Brooks upright at the edge of an examination table – one officer holding Brooks by the neck – before laying him flat on his back. Another officer then puts his foot on Brooks' lower body and one of the first officers who punched Brooks strikes him again in the chest.
The officer who struck Brooks with his leg is then seen restraining Brooks' legs before slapping him on the buttocks approximately three times.
He and another officer appear to drag Brooks again to the edge of the examination table, his face visibly bloodied. Brooks appears to speak before an officer punches him in the chest again.
Two officers then grab Brooks by the collar of his shirt and his shoulder, taking him off the table before forcing him to the back right corner of the room and holding him against a wall as other officers watch.
Minutes later, video shows one of the officers first punching Brooks and then giving him a sternum massage – to try to assess whether someone is conscious.
The video then shows Brooks, no longer handcuffed, lying on the table, motionless in his underwear.
Jeremy Faust, an emergency physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, told CNN that it appeared possible Brooks suffered a fatal spinal cord injury when officers lifted him off the table by his shirt. Authorities have not released a cause of death for Brooks.
“My jaw hit the floor when I saw it,” Faust said, “because it seemed like there was just enough force in the right direction to do real damage.” He noted that although Brooks was previously alert, he did not appear to move or respond to stimuli after officers picked him up.
The way officers lifted Brooks extended his neck, Faust explained. This could have caused “a devastating spinal cord injury, resulting in immediate or near-instant paralysis of the body, including the respiratory muscles,” he said.
'Institutional change must follow'
Officials in New York quickly condemned the fatal assault. Governor Kathy Hochul said Friday she was “outraged and shocked after seeing images of the senseless murder of Robert Brooks.” The governor previously said in a statement Saturday that she had led an internal investigation into Brooks' death and ordered the state corrections department to fire 14 employees involved.
“The vast majority of corrections officers do an extraordinary job under difficult circumstances, and we are all grateful for their service,” Hochul said. “But we will not tolerate individuals who cross the line, break the law and engage in unnecessary violence or targeted abuse.”
The state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision also denounced the attack. Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III said in a statement to CNN that the video left him “deeply disgusted and sickened” and that he would make “institutional changes” at the department.
“It is not enough to simply condemn this heinous act and then get back to business,” Martuscello said. “Institutional changes must follow, and we have already begun taking proactive steps to ensure something like this never happens again within our facilities.”
The commissioner said he has instituted a daily audit to ensure body cameras are properly activated in each facility and has taken steps to ensure “senior leaders” are present at all services in each facility.
The Marcy Correctional Facility is a medium-security state prison in Oneida County, approximately 52 miles (83 kilometers) east of Syracuse.
The Brooks family has reviewed body camera footage of the assault, Elizabeth Mazur, an attorney for the family, said in a statement to CNN.
“As expected, witnessing the horrific and violent final moments of Robert's life was devastating for his loved ones and will be disturbing to anyone who views the video after it is released by the Attorney General,” the statement said. “We will not rest until we secure justice for Robert's memory and safety for the inmates at Marcy Correctional Facility.”
In a statement on Sunday, NYSCOPBA, the union representing prison workers in New York, described the images of the abuse as “incomprehensible to say the least” and “certainly not a reflection of the great work that the vast majority of our members do every day . ”
This story has been updated with new information.
CNN's Caroll Alvarado and Tanika Gray contributed to this report.
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