By Brad Brooks
(Reuters) -New York’s governor on Monday ordered prison reforms and began the process of firing corrections officers who earlier this month beat a restrained Black inmate who died a few hours later.
Kathy Hochul’s office said in a written statement that she visited the Marcy Correctional Facility in central New York, where inmate Robert Brooks’ beating was captured on body-worn cameras.
Video of the violence was released last week by the state’s attorney general, who is investigating Brooks’ death. Hochul met with some inmates at the facility.
“Today, as I stood in the room where Robert Brooks was killed, I was once again heartbroken by this unnecessary loss of life and further sickened to think of the actions of depraved individuals with no regard for human life,” Governor Hochul said in a statement.
Hochul added: “The system failed Mr. Brooks and I will not be satisfied until there has been significant culture change.”
Elizabeth Mazur, a lawyer representing the Brooks family, said by email the changes ordered were “too little too late for Mr. Brooks and his family”.
“These things should have been done long ago,” Mazur said.
Brooks died early on Dec. 10, hours after he was beaten the night before. Video released last week by New York Attorney General Letitia James showed Brooks, in hand and feet restraints, being punched and kicked by several corrections officers, most of whom appeared to be white.
The videos have no audio and it is not clear from what was released what led to the beating of Brooks. James has said that charges are possible for those involved.
An autopsy is being conducted by the Onondaga County medical examiner’s office.
Brooks had been imprisoned since 2017 and was serving a 12-year sentence for assault.
Among other measures, Hochul on Monday appointed a new permanent superintendent for the facility and expedited $400 million in funding to install fixed cameras in all state prisons and distribute more body-worn cameras for corrections officers.
Hochul also ordered an outside firm to conduct a review of the culture, patterns and practices of all state prisons and is expanding an anonymous whistleblower hotline for state prisons. She is also increasing funding for a group that provides independent monitoring and oversight of prisons.
