Meek Mill has spoken out following the release of bodycam footage showing prison inmate Robert Brooks being fatally beaten by correctional officers at Marcy Correctional Facility. The video, made public last week, reveals 13 guards assaulting Brooks, who was handcuffed in a medical room. He died the next day, with the cause of death ruled as "asphyxia due to compression of the neck." The circumstances that led to Brooks being taken to the medical room remain unclear. Brooks, who was serving a 12-year sentence for first-degree assault, had been transferred to Marcy Correctional Facility on the day of the fatal incident.
Meek Mill, who has become a vocal advocate for prison reform after his own experiences with incarceration, condemned the violent conduct depicted in the footage. He expressed his outrage to X (formerly Twitter): “I never fully watched this until today. This is what it’s like for Black men in America if you get caught without cameras around. If you’ve been to jail before, you’ve seen this with your own eyes.” The Brooks case reignites calls for systemic reform in the U.S. prison system.
Meek Mill Relates Brutal Prison Inmate Assault Video To His & Other Black Inmates' Experience
New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced the immediate dismissal of the 13 prison officers involved, along with a nurse. “The state of New York has zero tolerance for individuals who break the law, and I am committed to holding everyone involved fully accountable,” Hochul stated. New York Attorney General Letitia James also launched an investigation into Brooks' death. James released the footage because Brooks family deserved the footage. “I have a responsibility to provide the Brooks family and all New Yorkers with transparency and accountability," she says.
His family, now represented by legal counsel, released a statement denouncing the violence. “He deserved to live, and everyone else living in Marcy Correctional Facility deserves to know they do not have to live in fear of violence at the hands of prison staff.”
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