Family of Robert Brooks responds to verdict in correctional officers’ murder trial

(UTICA, NY) -The family of Robert L. Brooks responded to the jury verdicts in the criminal trial of three correctional officers in Brooks’ December 2025 beating death in Marcy Correctional Facility on Monday. 

The jury found Marcy Correctional Officer David Kingsley guilty of murder in the second degree, while Mathew Galliher and Nicholas Kieffer were acquitted.

“Today, the jury made the right decision in finding David Kingsley guilty of murder. While it was hard to see Matthew Galliher and Nicholas Kieffer be given a pass, it highlights the need for systemic change. Mr. Galliher and Mr. Kieffer were doing exactly what their prison supervisors expected them to do. The guards indicted in this case were not a few bad apples; they were part of a rotten system, doing what state officials have allowed them to do.”

Brooks, Jr. said the family plans to press forward with the federal civil rights lawsuit it filed in January 2025 against New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) officials of New York in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York. Brooks, Jr. also noted the family is advocating for policy change with the End Prison Violence campaign.

“During this trial, we heard the truth about what happens to people in New York prisons. We learned that violence and coverups are normalized within DOCCS,” said Jared Ricks. “The details that were laid bare about what happens in New York prisons should outrage everyone.”

Brooks was fatally beaten by correctional officers in Marcy Correctional Facility in Marcy, New York on December 9, 2024. Bodyworn camera footage of Mr. Brooks’ brutal killing shocked the country when the New York Attorney General’s Office released it to the public on December 27, 2024. That video footage can be viewed here.

For more information, please contact Joanna Klonsky at press@joannaklonsky.com or 312-307-0840.