The family of Robert L. Brooks expressed both relief and determination on Thursday after a grand jury handed down indictments against New York correctional officers for his fatal beating at Marcy Correctional Facility.
Brooks’ son, Robert Brooks, Jr., spoke at a press conference following the court hearing, calling the indictments a “necessary and important step toward accountability.” He described the pain of witnessing his father’s death in December, when correctional officers brutally beat him—a killing later ruled a homicide by the medical examiner.
“These men killed my father, on camera. All the world could see what happened,” Brooks, Jr. said. “These men must be fully prosecuted and convicted for what they have done. But even the convictions of these corrections officers for the murder of my father will not be enough. Every person in authority who allowed this system of violence and abuse to exist and continue for so long must also be held accountable.”
Jared Ricks, Brooks’ brother, emphasized the need for justice. “These indictments bring some measure of relief to my family as we grieve my brother’s loss. No one is above the law,” he said.
The indictment follows the public release of body-worn camera footage by the New York Attorney General’s Office on December 27, 2024, which sparked national outrage. The Brooks family has since filed a federal civil rights lawsuit and a separate claim in New York State Court.
Attorneys representing the family, including Elizabeth Mazur and Steve Schwarz, stressed the importance of the charges in seeking justice. “Wearing a badge does not give anyone license to act with impunity,” Mazur said. Schwarz called the murder indictments “an appropriate and necessary step” in holding those responsible accountable.
The Brooks family’s legal team, which includes Hughes Socol Piers Resnick & Dym, Ltd. and Faraci Lange, LLP, previously handled the high-profile case of Daniel Prude’s 2020 death in Rochester, which resulted in a $12 million settlement.
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