A New York correction officer pleaded guilty Monday to the beating death of Robert Brooks.
Brooks was beaten by officers at Marcy Correctional Facility on December 9, 2024, with his hands cuffed behind his back. The beating was captured on bodycam video. Brooks died the following day.
Christopher Walrath was among six correctional officers facing second-degree murder charges. He pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter on Monday. According to the agreement, he will serve a 15-year sentence. If he had been convicted of second-degree murder, he could have received life in prison.
The judge indicated that Brooks’ family had approved the plea deal.
Walrath, 36, responded “yes” to a series of questions. He admitted leaving his post to participate in the beating, assaulting Brooks alongside his fellow officers, putting Brooks in a chokehold, and striking him in the body and groin. He also acknowledged lying about the attack.
Brooks was attacked soon after he arrived at Marcy.
“The reality is that Brooks did nothing. It was ‘Welcome to Marcy’. You were trouble at Mid-State; you won’t be trouble here. And that is a problem that must be addressed immediately,” Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick said.
Walrath and his attorney exited the courtroom without comment. He will be formally sentenced on August 4.
According to prosecutors, three other prison employees have also reached plea deals, but this is the first to do so formally in the case.
Brooks had been serving a 12-year sentence for assault. He had been in jail since 2017 and had recently been transferred to Marcy before the fatal beating. His death was ruled homicide.
Attorney General Letitia James’ office released video of the incident. Multiple corrections officers beat Brooks while he was handcuffed on a medical examination table. The video shows Brooks being struck in the chest with a shoe before being hoisted up by his neck and dropped.
Governor Kathy Hochul condemned the incident.
“Robert Brooks should be alive today,” Governor Kathy Hochul said in a February statement. “The brutal attack on Mr. Brooks was sickening, and I immediately moved to terminate the employment of those responsible. The perpetrators have now been properly charged with murder, and State Police are making arrests.
Brooks’ family has filed a civil rights lawsuit, claiming excessive force and a system that condones violence.