Ten NY prison guards charged in fatal beating of inmate

Robert Brooks had been transferred to the prison in New York state shortly before being beaten to death

Ten former New York state prison guards have been charged in connection with the fatal beating of a prison inmate.

Officers were seen on body camera footage hitting Robert Brooks while he sat handcuffed on a medical examination table at the Marcy Correctional Facility in December 2024.

Brooks died the following day.

On Thursday, a grand jury handed down indictments on charges including second-degree murder, manslaughter and tampering with evidence.

Of the nine officers who appeared in court on Thursday, all pleaded not guilty. Another is set to appear in court next week, the county district attorney said.

Footage of the incident was captured on prison guard body cameras

Bodycam videos appear to show a prison officer placing something in Brooks's mouth before striking him, and another officer hitting him in the stomach with a shoe.

At one point, an officer is seen lifting Brooks by the neck before forcefully putting him on the examination table.

A medical examiner ruled Brooks's death a homicide.

A special prosecutor assigned to the case, Onandaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick, detailed Brooks's serious injuries on Thursday, including broken bones and cartilage, bruising to his internal organs and repeated restrictions to his airways which caused severe brain damage.

Brooks "did absolutely nothing" to provoke the assault and ultimately died by choking on his own blood, Fitzpatrick said, according to the BBC's US news partner CBS.

Shortly after the incident, New York Governor Kathy Hochul ordered the firing of 13 officers and a prison nurse who were allegedly involved in the assault.

Fitzpatrick said prison officers Anthony Farina, Nicholas Anzalone, David Kingsley, Christopher Walrath and Mathew Galliher were charged with second-degree murder, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. All five pleaded not guilty at arraignments on Thursday.

Michael Mashaw, Michael Fisher and David Walters were charged with manslaughter and face a sentence of up to 15 years if convicted, while Nicholas Gentile was charged with tampering with evidence, which is punishable by up to four years behind bars. They all pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Another unnamed suspect indicted for second-degree murder will surrender at a later date, Fitzpatrick said, and three others, also unnamed by authorities, have reached plea agreements.

The union that represents the officers, New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, said the actions of those involved in the incident were "incomprehensible and not reflective of the majority of our membership".

In a statement it added: "The indictments and arrests today of those officers who allegedly were involved in causing Mr. Brooks death, should be afforded the same presumption of innocence that every citizen is afforded until proven guilty in a court of law."

Several attorneys for the defendants declined to comment on the case Friday, and the BBC attempted to contact legal representatives for the other officers.

The investigation into Brooks's death continues.

At the time of his death, Brooks, 43, had served nine years of a 12-year prison sentence for stabbing his son's mother. He had been transferred to the Marcy prison, about 220 miles (350km) north of New York City, from a nearby facility just hours before the beating.