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For the first time since Greece resident Robert Brooks died Dec. 10 after being beaten by corrections officers at a prison near Utica, his family spoke publicly at a protest early this week.
Under the stark white floodlights ringing the Monroe County Jail’s concrete exterior, Brooks’ father, mother and son spoke out for systemic change, called for justice, and shared some details about the life of Brooks, who grew up attending Rochester city schools.
They spoke to a crowd of over 100 people at a demonstration organized by nine local activist groups. The crowd congregated three days after the release of graphic body camera footage of corrections officers beating Brooks. The footage was obtained in the course of the state attorney general’s probe into his death.
The videos have since sparked a federal investigation by the FBI and the Department of Justice, along with protests across the state. They also have thrown new light on previous incidents of alleged violence against inmates at the prison where Brooks was beaten.
At the Dec. 30 rally in Rochester, speakers’ demands for change were wide-ranging. Some, like Thomas Gant from the Center for Community Alternatives, emphasized legislative priorities for prison reform. Others, like City Councilmember Stanley Martin, expressed a longing for the abolition of policing and prisons entirely.
Everyone agreed on two things: justice for the Brooks family, and frustration at another scene of a Black man being apparently killed by law enforcement officers.
“I want freedom for every man. I want us to be treated equal!” said Brooks’ mother, Mary Brooks, with her soft voice ratcheting up into a frustrated yell. “I’m sick of this!”
The beating
On Dec. 27, Attorney General Letitia James released the body-worn camera footage of four of the officers involved in Brooks’ beating on Dec. 9. The recordings were taken in standby mode—none of the cameras were intentionally activated, James said.
The videos show Brooks being dragged with his arms handcuffed behind his back into an infirmary room at Marcy Correctional Facility outside Utica, where he was being transferred from Mohawk Correctional Facility.
In the recordings, Brooks, who was serving a 12-year sentence for a 2017 assault, is tossed onto a gurney, and officers then take turns beating him. They hit him in the head and abdomen, kick him in the groin area, beat him with a shoe, and hoist him by the neck and jumpsuit several times. His face is visibly bloodied.
At one point, he is lifted to a wall in the back of the infirmary room, where officers hold him up by his arms. It is not clear what is done at this point, but Brooks is then dragged back to the gurney before his jumpsuit is removed and he appears to be still.
All the while, a large number of prison staff members can be seen milling around and watching. Brooks died the next day, Dec. 10, at a local hospital.
The report of his death triggered an investigation by the AG’s Office of Special Investigations, which is required to look into any incident where a law enforcement officer may have killed someone or caused a person’s death by omission. (Late Thursday, the AG’s office decided to recuse itself from the investigation of the correction officers involved in the events preceding Brooks’ death, citing a conflict of interest. )
Reviews of the footage before release triggered a flurry of preemptive statements from officials.
Gov. Kathy Hochul ordered the commissioner of the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision to fire the 14 prison employees—13 corrections officers and one nurse—under investigation. Thirteen are currently suspended without pay, and one has resigned. And in a rare statement, the union representing corrections officers, the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, said the beating of Brooks was “incomprehensible to say the least” and that the incident “not only endangers our entire membership but undermines the integrity of our profession.”
James called the videos “shocking and disturbing.”
Red flags
While officials’ statements have emphasized their shock at the attack on Brooks, red flags about violence by guards at Marcy have been thrown up for years.
When interviewing people incarcerated at the prison in October 2022, an independent oversight body found inmates reported a “retaliatory environment” and “rampant abuse” by staff that included physical assaults and racialized abuse and discrimination.
The Correctional Association of New York spoke with 117 of the 909 people incarcerated in Marcy at the time. They asked 73 people about staff behavior, and 77 percent reported having been personally subject to verbal, physical, or sexual abuse by staff.
During open-ended questioning, CANY found a significantly higher instance of reported staff abuse at Marcy compared to other prisons they had visited recently—Bare Hill Correctional Facility in Franklin County and Elmira Correctional Facility. The same was true for alleged race-based abuse and discriminatory treatment.
This was reported despite several inmates confiding in CANY workers that prison staff had walked through the housing units announcing threats of physical harm in retaliation for speaking with the monitors.
“Physical abuse is rampant; the CO told me when I got here this is a ‘hands-on facility,’ we’re going to put hands on you if we don’t like what you’re doing,” said one inmate quoted in CANY’s report.
Staff violence was just one segment of the broad types of alleged mistreatment relayed to the monitors. The claims led CANY to recommend the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision’s Office of Special Investigations and the inspector general to investigate the abuse claims at Marcy.
On top of this, some of the officers allegedly involved in beating Brooks have been named in abuse lawsuits before, including one that alleged the existence of a “beat-up squad” run by corrections officers at Marcy.
In February 2020, Adam Bauer was serving a sentence for a non-violent drug-related offense when he was allegedly beaten by two sergeants and two corrections officers, including Officer Nicholas Anzalone, who is allegedly implicated in Brooks’ death.
According to a pending suit filed in federal court in 2022, Bauer alleges he went to the bathroom to smoke a cigarette before an officer ordered him to submit to a search, during which the officer punched him in the head, threw him to the ground and kicked him in the side.
Anzalone and two sergeants then allegedly entered the bathroom and joined in kicking Bauer or failed to stop the assault. Bauer was then brought to the infirmary, where Anzalone allegedly kicked his feet while he was forced to lie face down on the floor.
The suit further alleges that the officers involved told the infirmary nurse that Bauer’s injuries were self-inflicted and that they fabricated disciplinary charges against Bauer to cover up the assault. After returning from a hospital emergency room, Bauer maintains, an officer threatened him if he told anyone about the assault, and he was thrown into solitary confinement before he was penalized for the allegedly false disciplinary charges against him.
Two other officers being investigated for Brooks’ deaths, Sgt. Glenn Trombly and Officer Anthony Farina, were named in another 2022 lawsuit by William Alvarez.
Alvarez claims that, while he was cleaning the floors in the shower areas of a dorm at Marcy, an officer pepper-sprayed him without provocation. He says he then ran out of the bathroom into the main dorm, at which point the officer ordered other inmates back to their sleeping quarters and directed Alvarez to a vestibule.
Alvarez claims he complied, but that the officer activated his personal alarm system nonetheless, summoning other officers to the scene. Farina, Trombly, and two others responded. One of the officers then allegedly slammed Alvarez’s head against the wall multiple times and cuffed him. He says he fell to the ground and was kicked multiple times in the head and body without intervention by any of the officers.
He was then dragged to a van to be taken to the prison infirmary, the suit claims. While en route, Farina and Trombly allegedly watched while another officer punched him several times while he was cuffed. Trombly finally intervened when the van arrived at the infirmary, at which point the beating stopped, the suit claims.
Alvarez also alleges that the officer who he claims pepper-sprayed him in the showers fabricated a misbehavior report against him that led to him being subject to various forms of punishment, including being cut off from telephone contact with health care providers while his infant daughter was being treated for eye cancer.
In his deposition, Alvarez made further allegations that corrections officers at Marcy have a “beat-up squad” that “do the assaults and rough handling” against inmates. Trombly, he said, was in charge of it.
“Do you have any sense as to why officers Tuttle, Farina, Babbitt or (Trombly) would assault you?” Assistant Attorney General Matthew Gallagher asked Alvarez.
“I told you they were known as the beat-up squad,” he answered. “That’s what they would do.”
In both the Alvarez and Bauer cases, the defendant officers categorically deny the claims, according to court papers filed by the attorney general—who is serving as defense attorney in the Bauer and Alvarez cases while also now spearheading the investigation into Brooks’ death.
Calls for change
On that rainy Monday night outside the county jail in Rochester, the words spoken by Brooks’ father rang more like a sermon than a speech. He invoked gospel—and ideas of good and evil, sin and duty—while speaking about his son’s death and his desire for justice and systemic change.
“I went into the room, and God wrote me out some prescriptions—one for courage, one for faith, one for perseverance,” said Robert Brooks Sr., invoking the Black Gospel song “Come On In the Room.”
Brooks’ father continued: “He said, ‘Dry those tears, and go get some justice for your son.’ I’m telling you y’all, there’s a level of evil that I can’t even comprehend. But it’s not white evil or black evil, rich or poor evil, Jew or gentile evil. It’s not a White House or a poor house, or a Park Avenue or park benches evil. It’s just evil.
“Now, don’t get me wrong, we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. But when you have taken the law officer’s Oath of Honor, the Hippocratic Oath, or the Florence Nightingale Pledge of nurses, but you participate or sit idly by smiling and chatting, as if this is just another day at the office, while a man is being beaten to death—that’s evil.”
Brooks, alongside others who spoke, lamented the fact that his son had been denied a second chance to become his best self. He called for urgent justice and reform, before the group held candles and a moment of silence.
The candlelight was met by acknowledging light flickers from the jail windows above—silent support from the people incarcerated inside.
While some of the calls for change that night were broad, some included specific demands. Gant, a community organizer with the Rochester chapter of the Center for Community Alternatives, called for the immediate firing and denial of pensions for any officers and accomplices involved in Brooks’ death.
He also called for the passage of a number of legislative priorities of the Justice Roadmap, a coalition of over 220 organizations demanding changes to New York’s criminal law and immigration systems. He mentioned the Second Look Act, the Earned Time Act and the Marvin Mayfield Act.
“The longer we wait to get people out of prison, the more lives are lost to the system’s brutality,” he said. “New York’s unjust and racist sentencing laws have fueled mass incarceration and torn Black and brown families apart for generations. Enough’s enough.”
In the wake of Brooks’ death and a visit to Marcy prison, Hochul has also directed some changes in the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. Alongside several oversight measures, she has pushed for the deployment of $2 million to CANY and is expediting $400 million to install fixed cameras and distribute body-worn cameras in DOCCS facilities.
While Hochul met some of CANY’s demands, including the expedited camera funding, the organization has called for much more systemic change, including the passage of 11 bills pending in the state Legislature related to criminal justice reform. The organization called on DOCCS to meet the moment with a culture shift.
“DOCCS must work with partners in and outside of government to address the systemic issues that allow such brutality to flourish, many of which have been described in CANY’s reporting over the past few years alone,” the association said in a statement. “This moment demands a fundamental shift in culture inside correctional facilities and requires a commitment to transparency, accountability and lasting change at all levels.”
Local officials have echoed the calls for systemic reform. At the protest, Martin championed prison abolition, and in a statement, she said accountability for Brooks’ death “must include strategies to divert people from the carceral system in the first place, and a complete overhaul of how people who’re incarcerated are fundamentally viewed, treated and kept safe.” Councilmember Mary Lupien called for a “fundamental shift toward a justice system that prioritizes humanity over punishment.”
Rochester Mayor Malik Evans said those responsible for Brooks’ death must be held accountable, but he did not comment on wider policy or systemic changes.
The Brooks family sees systemic change as part of justice for Robert’s death. His son, holding back tears, said as much at the protest Monday night.
“Our family is very grateful for the community support,” Robert Brooks Jr. said. “Our deepest wish is that my father’s death will not be in vain. His killing must be a catalyst for change. Justice must be served.”
Justin O’Connor is a Rochester Beacon contributing writer. The Beacon welcomes comments and letters from readers who adhere to our comment policy including use of their full, real name. See “Leave a Reply” below to discuss on this post. Comments of a general nature may be submitted to the Letters page by emailing [email protected].
From uk – the murder of robert and abuse of others is enough to cancel plan to ever visit usa agin if can avoid visit,sorry but its true and its not good for tourism not to even nenyikn hkwbtbe murderes have abused also their country.
Frank, you are correct, I agree that NYC and the rest of the state have different perspectives. Some, like Joe Robach have suggested we consider separating from NYC as a state. Is that your thought? Or is there another solution?
If the counties outside the seven “downstate” tried to separate, we “upstaters” would not survive economically. Studies repeatedly prove that we need to stay united. One issue that legislators need to address is that years ago, when public unions downstate were negotiating contracts and operating agreements, they more or less forced other “Big Five” cities into the same agreements that they have; I suspect that the idea was there is strength in numbers. If I recall correctly, Yonkers, Albany, Syracuse, Rochester, and Buffalo are part of the coalition. The agreement also controls how our school board operates on behalf of citizens, so we don’t have a public vote on budgets as all the other districts do. I believe that’s why we have such a considerable expense for RCSD and poor performance. Politically, it comes down to the tyranny of the majority. New York City benefits from the upstate, like cheap hydropower for its subways and public housing, but it is unaware of our contribution. Having grown up in New York City, I can attest that the vast majority of NYC Residents think the “upstate” begins and ends in the Catskills. I don’t know how much influence our state representatives have in Albany and how much downstate representatives listen. If I ran this circus, I’d try to get the upstate Chamber of Commerce members to create a massive public information campaign both in Albany and New York City that would garner more citizen pressure on their representatives to understand that some of our needs are unique and how much value we add to their quality of life. Our Governor is the first one from “upstate” as far back as I remember, and I think she’s doing a good job with economic development, along with Sen. Schumer. However, on more politically mundane issues like bail reform and criminal justice reform, upstate hasn’t done enough to get folks to understand how different we are. Ironically, the largest prisons are located “upstate,” I assume that most inmates are also from the downstate. Hopefully, when the Beacon has its input session in the coming week, it will have on this year’s agenda a way to communicate to all state leaders how the needs of upstate, in many cases, don’t have a one-size-fits-all solution. Beacon editors, invite our elected officials to your listening session; they might learn something.
Frank, well stated. Admittedly there are times I tell people I’m from Western New York or the Finger Lakes region to distinguish us from “upstate”, that area between NYC and Albany. Of course we’re not the only state with this issue. I’m not hopeful things will change anytime soon. The issue at hand is complicated and deeper than many think in terms of human behavior. Your analysis and broad historical perspective reflect that. Remember the pushback Governor Cuomo got when he suggested more inmates be offered college educations?
https://federalcriminaldefenseattorney.com/opposition-to-new-yorks-college-in-prison-plan-grows-despite-html/
It’s my contention that simplistic thinking we see today will stymy reform. Whether it’s Trump ranting and blaming everything on immigrants or Eagle’s ranting and blaming everything on racism. Issues are deeper than they appear and require deeply considered solutions. Thanks for your input.
If the Scandinavian countries have a more humane prison system than they by default have something to offer. A plethora of studies have shown the propensity of guard/officer brutality in these situations regardless of race. The argument to eschew science, experience, and evidence makes no sense. We can only hope people would make themselves aware of the science, experience and data before making ill-informed criticisms or believing in simplistic solutions.
Trump would do better if he were to listen to others before ranting. Trump would be wise to listen to others and lose the arrogance that no one knows as well as he does.
The belief that “lily-White” people have nothing to offer is on its face racist. Racist comments are racist comments. Trump’s racist comments are simply different sides of the same racist coin that any race has nothing to offer.
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/racist
‘Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster.’ – Friedrich Nietzsche
Many of Mr. Eagle’s posts focus on systematic, historical, and institutional racism. Although I see the world through a different lens and can never have his life experience, I think it’s worthwhile to consider his point of view to broaden our understanding.
Whether it’s our failing education system or employment or lack of economic opportunity for young people of color, it is blindingly obvious that our entire criminal justice and law enforcement system needs to be overhauled.
As another writer pointed out, that’s the prevue of our State elected officials. It is also apparent that there are significant differences between the needs and desires of the large metropolitan centers downstate and the rest of the State.
The optimistic and naïve bail reform pushed by downstate representatives because of failures at Rikers Island and other NY City jails was not a one-size-fits-all solution and needs immediate remediation.
I’d also like to posit that there are very real cultural and historical differences between The Black community and White community, as well as other minority communities, that must be recognized, and we all need to make a continuing and sustained effort to expand our world view to change our behavior and attitudes toward one another. That said, no individual, not even elected officials, can sincerely say they speak for or have the best view of how things should be for their diverse constituents. Living in a democracy, all citizens need to participate. We should only elect people who can and will genuinely address the diverse needs of the people they represent but also act on potentially tricky issues they must advocate for, such as modifying bail and prison reform.
I do not suggest that I know how every aspect of the criminal justice system should work, but I know right from wrong. Our state and federal representatives must convene listening events that encourage every concerned citizen to participate. Then, they need to get to work during this upcoming session, reexamine the dysfunctional system they created, and make the badly needed reforms.
We can agree that race likely played a part in this case. However, addressing race won’t solve the core problem of a draconian prison system. Many studies have shown the tendency toward brutality in prisons regardless of race. You could have all white prisons, or all black prisons, given the structure we use now there will be brutality. We need to study the affects of inordinately long prison sentences, the physical structures themselves, the role of correctional officers from just guards to mentors and role models, be willing to pay for better training for both inmates and officers, and focus more on rehabilitating inmates. Several Scandinavian prisons have made progress in this area and we should study them. As we can see some of the worst prisons in the world are not effected by race or cultural differences. Inhumane treatment and conditions can flourish anywhere.
https://securityjournalamericas.com/worst-prisons-in-the-world/
A very clear eyed and thought out – thought provoking response. It’s definitely not an easily remedied issue.
Agreed that in this case racism may well have been a factor, and to look at racism as the sole factor may be short sighted. This is evident in that some of the victims were white people. Addressing racism alone won’t fix the problem. We should broaden our scope. You are correct there are many factors involved and the entire system and our focus needs reform.
I am curious, is this an upstate versus downstate perspective, or a rural/suburban perspective versus urban perspective?
The majority of State Legislators come from the seven downstate counties, so they tend to be myopic when writing legislation that will govern the entire state. Perhaps it should be evident that NYC is far more liberal and diverse than the rest of the state. As someone who grew up in NYC, I can see stark differences between upstate and downstate attitudes. That said, Rochester and Monroe County continue to fail in addressing challenges in housing, education, job opportunities, criminal justice, and a plethora of unresolved social and political issues that plague the majority Black city population. In recent years, voters in the city have made significant progress in electing Black and other minority city and state representatives. Still, they haven’t been able to make our voices heard in Albany. The murder of an inmate at Marcy has garnered national attention. Hopefully, that tragedy will shine a bright light on our failed corrections system and the many root causes that must be addressed in a systematic and consistent effort.
There are several things in particular in the article that ought to leap right off of the page – as blatant contradictions:
1) It is reported that – “in a [so-called] rare statement, the union representing corrections officers, the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, said the beating of Brooks was ‘incomprehensible to say the least’ and that the incident ‘not only endangers our entire membership but undermines the integrity of our profession.’ ” YET, THOSE SAME HYPOCRITES SAID: “NYSCOPBA will continue to fulfill its legal obligation to defend all members from all administrative charges, regardless of severity or public outcry” ( https://www.wkbw.com/news/state-news/new-york-correction-officers-pummeled-handcuffed-prisoner-before-death-footage-shows ). If that does NOT represent a classic case of talking out of both sides of ones’ institutional-mouth – then no such thing exists!!!
2) “…the attorney general is serving as defense attorney in the Bauer and Alvarez cases (two thugs involved in Mr. Brooks’ murder] while also now spearheading the investigation into Brooks’ death.” How in the hell can someone legitimately represent thugs and investigate their murderous behavior at the same time???!!! THE DAMN RACIST SYSTEM IS RIGGED!!!
3) “I’m telling you y’all, there’s a level of evil that I can’t even comprehend. But it’s not white evil or black evil…” I don’t understand. It certainly appears to be RACIST, “WHITE EVIL” TO ME. All of the guards are white, and Mr Brooks was Black.
4) “Rochester Mayor Malik Evans said those responsible for Brooks’ death must be held accountable, but he did not comment on wider policy or systemic changes.” WHAT IN THE HECK DOES THAT SUPER-BROAD, GENERALIZED, GIBBERISH EVEN MEAN???!!! WHO IS HE EVEN TALKING ABOUT (SP{ECOIFICALLY)???!!!
So,
1. We know better, everyone is entitled to a defense. That’s why we fund the Public Defender’s Office. Even the “obviously guilty” the PD represents everyday. I’m not convinced we should do away with the concept of a right to a competent defense. That could easily backfire.
2. Point taken. The AG has recused herself. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/02/nyregion/robert-brooks-prison-death-letitia-james.html
3. Again, point taken. Not sure anyone is in a position to criticize the victim’s father for how he feels.
4. The mayor has no control over state issues. He’s the mayor not a state legislator. Better to focus on those who have the power than attack those doing the best at their level. Making demands of the mayor is silly and a waste of time, energy and resources. It also shows what may be interpreted as civic ignorance. Want to rally? Petition? Advocate? Be smart, let people know how to create reform. If one wants change be smart about it.
Prisoners in the NYS prison system have been being beaten and murdered for years. That was one of the big reasons for the Attica Uprising. Film footage of the uprising brought to light the horrific conditions these prisoners indured. In the end the majority of the deaths including guards there were caused by police shooters. This was the first big wake up call for people in NYS. There has been rumours in the community for years. Of brutality and murder of prisoners at the Marcy Prison. Along with alleged theft of items sent to prisoners in the form of monthly food packages. It has been reported that the guards there never have to buy or bring there lunches. They have everything they need in the package room. In the form of items, stolen or regected by prison staff. I’ve driven past Marcy. The vibe of evil emanating from that prison is pure evil. Little did I know that this vibe of evil was being created by the staff and Guards. These people need to be charged with first degree murder. Then prosecuted appropriately. Look at the country as a whole. We are becoming a country without a soul. George Orwell hit the nail on the head. When he wrote 1984. I’m ashamed of what our country has been at times in the past. I’m sickened and heartbroken at what we have become
Like most civilized people, I was shocked with disbelief watching the video of multiple Marcy Correctional Facility Correction Officers and a Nurse beating an inmate to death. I will try to avoid making a final judgment about what happened until the formal investigations are completed and charges, if any, are filed.
I’ve never been to a jail or prison, but I’ve heard stories about their conditions. I don’t know any Corrections Officers, but I imagine they have unbelievably challenging jobs. The two things that came to mind were what the inmate did to trigger the brutal and sustained attack and that the public only learned about it because some body-worn cameras were unintentionally left on. Which, of course, leads to the obvious question: how often are inmates brutalized when cameras are all turned off?
From most reports, the inmate in question had never been charged with brutal crimes, and at least from what I could see, he wasn’t a large or threatening man. I know of far more dangerous and recalcitrant inmates who undoubtedly give Correction Officers a more significant challenge. Also, I believe that COs get screened and trained to manage the inmates in their care.
I’m grateful that Governor Hochul, AG James, and the FBI are tasking wide-ranging investigations and funding improvements.
As citizens of New York, we need to demand that not only the most recent prison reforms be re-evaluated but also assessed, designed, and implemented proven public safety reforms from top to bottom. When necessary, we should split the needs of the seven downstate counties and those of the rest of the state because what we have now isn’t working.
Part of the issue starts with our “democracy”. The electorate demand its legislators to impose inordinately long prison sentences. We cry to make everything a felony with long sentences to “hold people accountable”. Long sentences lead to overcrowded and unnecessarily draconian prisons. Certainly there are dangerous people who should not be roaming amongst us, but many studies show many in prison are not there for violent offenses and that long sentences are not effective and do nothing to prevent recidivism. The first step is to reform our Penal Code, the second is to reform our prison system. Sorry Stanley Martin, abolishing prisons altogether is about as inane as abolishing the police. If you want to be taken seriously, be serious. Look to Sweden and Norway for answers.
No sir we do not need to look to overwhelmingly-white “Sweden and Norway for answers.” They have NO ANSWERS for us (here in the granddaddy of all white-supremacist-based nation ststes). The answer IS within. It’s REAL, ANTI-RACIST JUSTICE (plain and simnple).
Sweden and Norway have no answers? There’s nothing racist about the idea of more humane prisons with a more focused attention on reform rather than penalizing alone. It’s just silly to think we have all the answers and are afraid to look and listen to others. Almost sounds Trumpian, “I know all there is to know, I have all answers.”
Be open to educating ourselves, listen to others, study why the Swedish system reduces racist bias.
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/09/why-scandinavian-prisons-are-superior/279949/
Oh stop it! We already KNOW how to make the prison systen just and humane — without having to send someone to lily-white “Sweden and Norway for answers.”
I sound “trumpian”??? Now that’s the absolutely funniest CRAP that I’ve heard in a long, long, long … time.
TRUMP’S LONG RECORD OF HISTORICAL RACISM:
https://www.vox.com/2016/7/25/12270880/donald-trump-racist-racism-history