A former New York state corrections officer was found guilty Monday of murdering prisoner Robert Brooks last year, but two other guards were acquitted of second-degree murder, manslaughter and assault charges, according to multiple upstate media outlets.
Jurors in Oneida County took more than two full days to render their verdict after a weeklong trial. Prosecutors aired footage from body-worn cameras that showed officers kicking and punching Brooks in an infirmary at the Marcy Correctional Facility. Brooks died of his injuries at a hospital in nearby Utica.
Evidence at trial showed the officers did not realize their cameras were recording during the beating. The footage captured other prison staff, including two nurses, failing to intervene as the officers pummeled Brooks on a gurney.
Six of the 10 people charged in his homicide have pleaded guilty to manslaughter and other charges. Lawyers for the three defendants on trial — Matthew Galliher, David Kingsley and Nicholas Kieffer — said they weren’t responsible for Brooks’ death. They each faced at least 15 years in prison on second-degree murder charges.
Kingsley was found guilty of second-degree murder and first-degree assault, according to multiple outlets with reporters in the courtroom. Galliher and Kieffer were found not guilty of those charges and gang assault. Jurors found Kieffer not guilty of an additional charge of falsifying records.
Video evidence showed Kingsley restraining Brooks’ head and neck and helping another officer put him into handcuffs. Kingsley’s attorney Luke Nebush argued the former officer’s actions were within his training.
Brooks’ death spurred new attention on conditions in state prisons and prompted lawmakers to pass an omnibus bill calling for more oversight. Corrections officers stage an illegal three-week strike this winter as the indictments in Brooks’ case were unsealed.
Guards on strike said they were protesting violent conditions at state prisons. They pushed for changes to the 2021 HALT law, which limits the amount of time incarcerated people can spend in segregated confinement. Prisoners and supporters of that law said officers were trying to change the subject from the beating case.
The verdict comes as Gov. Kathy Hochul is seeking changes to the oversight bill, which was passed by her fellow Democrats in June, as she considers whether to sign or veto it. The state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision and unions representing its workers have separately proposed changes to the HALT law that would make it easier for guards to direct prisoners into solitary confinement.
Story by Jimmy Vielkind/New York Public News Network
Image: Screenshot of correction officers from Marcy Correctional near Utica during the fatal beating of 43-year-old Robert Brooks.