Summary
Footage released by the New York Attorney General shows corrections officers at Marcy Correctional Facility brutally beating handcuffed inmate Robert Brooks on December 9.
Brooks, restrained throughout the 15-minute assault, died the next day, with preliminary autopsy findings citing asphyxia and actions of others as the cause of death.
14 staff members have been terminated or suspended. Some officers failed to properly activate body cameras, violating state policy.
Advocates highlight systemic abuse and racial discrimination in New York prisons, while the investigation continues.
This will continue because of cowardice, unfortunately. Integrity is one of the only things that separates moral and ethical action. In the moment, groupthink/mob mentality/group mentality led to conformity which is exactly what happened, and is an extreme form of pressure. Regardless of the action/inaction in the moment, integrity was challenged and defeated. One of the only ways this will change is something that will probably not happen due to conformism within the system. You lived how hard it was… your integrity was challenged, and ultimately inaction was the choice that was made resulting in net zero integrity.
As everything in hindsight reveals the truth, the inaction feeds conformity. If it’s never challenged, then it evolves into a “norm.”