New York State has agreed to pay a $24 million settlement to the family of Robert Brooks, who was beaten to death by Department of Corrections officers while in custody at an upstate prison, state officials said.
“No family should ever have to endure what the family of Robert Brooks has been through,” Governor Hochul said in a statement Friday. “Every individual who enters a DOCCS facility deserves to be safe, and I am committed to continuing to do everything in my power to ensure our correctional facilities are fully reformed and safe for all.”
The settlement is expected to resolve several lawsuits filed by Brooks’ family, including a civil rights lawsuit pending in U.S. District Court in Albany, according to a Times Union report.
The $24 million payout is the highest settlement on record in New York for a civil rights lawsuit stemming from a person’s death while in custody in state prison, according to state Sen. Julia Salazar (D – Brooklyn/Queens), who said it may also be the highest in the nation’s history.
“Today’s settlement of $24 million, which will be paid with taxpayer dollars, is a recognition by the State of New York that it completely and utterly failed to stop this preventable tragedy,” Salazar said in a statement. “While nothing we do will bring Mr. Brooks back or ease the pain experienced by his loved ones, I hope this settlement provides the Brooks family with a semblance of comfort.”
Brooks, 43, was transferred to Marcy Correctional Facility in Oneida County on Dec. 9, 2024. He was brought to the prison infirmary, where numerous guards surrounded, punched, kicked, choked, dropped and manhandled him.
Brooks died one day after the attack, and his death was declared a homicide the following month. The assault, which was captured on bodycam footage, led to charges against 10 guards.
David Kingsley was convicted of murder and manslaughter, while five other guards pleaded guilty to manslaughter for Brooks’ death. In addition, Nicholas Gentile pleaded guilty to attempted tampering with physical evidence after admitting to cleaning up Brooks’ blood following the attack.