The family of Adam Lafferty, a 40-year-old inmate who died in his cell at Five Points Correctional Facility on December 23, is demanding answers, alleging years of abuse, misconduct, and repeated pleas for protection that went unanswered by prison officials and the justice system. It comes days after the assault-and-death of Robert Brooks at Marcy Correctional Facility at the hands of correction staff.
Lafferty was serving a 2-to-7-year sentence for third-degree burglary after pleading guilty in Wayne County Court in 2020. Despite the non-violent nature of his conviction, he was housed in the maximum-security facility alongside inmates serving sentences for violent crimes, including murder. His family questions why he was kept in such conditions and claims he should have been eligible for minimum-security placement long before his death.
According to reporting by The Finger Lakes Times, in late October, Lafferty wrote to U.S. District Court Judge John Sinatra in Buffalo, pleading to be moved to protective custody. In his handwritten letter, Lafferty described abuse by correctional officers and threats from his cellmate. He claimed to have been beaten, denied medical attention, obstructed from pursuing legal action, and threatened repeatedly. Despite his documented complaints and grievances, there is no public record that any action was taken in response to his pleas.
On the morning of December 23, Lafferty was found dead in his cell. According to his family, New York State Police investigators out of the Waterloo barracks told them the case is being treated as a homicide. Photographs taken by Lafferty’s mother after his death reportedly show severe injuries, including a black bruise on his forehead and deep cuts across his chest and neck. The family was also told that a lace, possibly from a shoe, was found wrapped tightly around Lafferty’s neck, cutting into his flesh.
Seneca County District Attorney John Nabinger told the FLT the case remains under investigation but declined to provide further details. They also reported that Lafferty had filed multiple legal grievances during his time in prison, including lawsuits over abuse, denial of medical care, and mistreatment by prison staff. In May and September of last year, the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division dismissed several of his claims, calling them “broad allegations” lacking sufficient detail. However, the court allowed him to refile with additional evidence, and his family believes he was actively preparing those filings at the time of his death.
“My family is at complete shock and we still have no answers,” Justin Baird, Lafferty’s brother said in an email to FingerLakes1.com. “He always told us if something ever happens to him fight for him. He should’ve never been in a maximum security prison in the first place because he was a minimum security inmate.”
The family is calling for transparency, accountability, and an independent investigation into Lafferty’s death. They are also urging state officials, including Attorney General Letitia James, to intervene.
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