The beating of Robert Brooks by multiple officers at Marcy Correctional Facility in December was caught unintentionally on body-worn cameras, triggering widespread outrage and calls for justice.
Some of the corrections officers appeared in a Utica court in handcuffs while a judge heard pleas and considered bond.
Prison guards Nicholas Anzalone, David Kingsley, Anthony Farina, Christopher Walrath and Mathew Galliher were among the people charged with second-degree murder, according to court documents. The name of the sixth person was redacted because they'll appear in court at a different time.
All six were also charged with first-degree manslaughter, meaning prosecutors believe they are criminally liable for the conduct of others.
The special prosecutor, Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick, said Thursday that he'll prove in court that the guards thought the body-worn cameras were off, raising concerns about a culture among guards in which a group beating of an inmate could be carried out with an apparent "sense of normalcy."
Robert Brooks Jr., the victim's son, said after witnessing court proceedings that those system issues must be rooted out, and higher authorities held accountable.
"These men killed my father, it was on video. The whole world got to see it. Waiting a month for these charges has been incredibly hard. But these men must be prosecuted and convicted of the crimes they made," the younger Brooks said.
After some of the corrections officers were released, one man said, "This is not justice, judge - These people killed a Black man," as he left the courtroom. One woman was removed after shouting "murder, murder."
Body-camera video shows officers pummeling Brooks, whose hands are cuffed behind his back. Officers strike him in the chest with a shoe and lift him by the neck and drop him. The video recorded on the night of Dec. 9 has no sound, but the guards meting out the punishment and watching it appear unconcerned. Brooks, 43, died the next day.
An autopsy report issued by the county medical examiner's office in January concluded that Brooks' death was caused by compression of the neck and multiple blunt impact injuries and that the manner of death was determined to be a homicide, according to Brooks' family attorneys.
Galliher, one of the corrections officers, was further charged with gang assault. Three other prison guards were charged with lesser manslaughter offenses, meaning that prosecutors believe they did not commit murder, but were criminally responsible for the actions of others to some degree. They are Michael Mashaw, Michael Fisher and David Walters.
One worker, whose title was unclear, was charged with tampering with evidence.
Nicolas Gentile allegedly "cleaned the area of Robert Brooks' blood stains in an effort to conceal" the assault, according to court documents.
Gov. Kathy Hochul first announced the murder charges early Thursday afternoon in a statement.
"Robert Brooks should be alive today. The brutal attack on Mr. Brooks was sickening, and I immediately moved to terminate the employment of those involved. Now, the perpetrators have been rightfully charged with murder and State Police are making arrests," she said.
Hochul's announcement of the murder charges came on the fourth day of a wildcat strike, in which at least some corrections officers are refusing to enter their shifts at 36 correctional facilities across the state, according to prison officials.
"This incident is a sobering reminder of the challenges facing our correctional system. I've worked with Commissioner Martuscello on safety reforms, including installing new security cameras, strengthening the Office of Special Investigations and increasing compensation for our hard-working correction officers," she said in Thursday's statement.
Hochul had ordered state officials to initiate proceedings to fire more than a dozen employees implicated in the attack on Brooks.
Brooks had been serving a 12-year prison sentence for first-degree assault since 2017. He arrived at the prison 200 miles (320 kilometers) northwest of New York City only hours before the beating after being transferred from another nearby facility, officials said.
Robert Brooks Jr. claimed in a federal lawsuit filed in January that his father's attackers "systematically and casually beat him to death" and that the prison system tolerates violence.
Even before Brooks' death, employees at the medium-security prison had been accused of abusing incarcerated people.
Fitzpatrick took over the case as a special prosecutor after state Attorney General Letitia James recused herself, citing her office's representation of several implicated officers in separate civil lawsuits. Those employees had previously been accused of either taking part in previous beatings of inmates or letting them continue.
"It's fortunate that video evidence of a callous murder made it possible for charges to be brought against these officers. For far too long, that evidence has not existed, making transparency and accountability out of reach," said Jennifer Scaife, executive director of the Correctional Association of New York.
That watchdog group reported "rampant abuse by staff" at Marcy after interviewing people incarcerated there in October 2022, who told them of physical assaults in locations without cameras, such as between the gates, in vans and in showers. A guard told one new arrival that this was a "'hands-on facility,' we're going to put hands on you if we don't like what you're doing," according to the report.