Emma's Blog

Former Marcy Corrections Officer Christopher Walrath was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Monday for his involvement in the death of inmate Robert Brooks. Walrath pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the first degree on May 5.

Brooks' son, Robert Brooks Jr., was in Oneida County Court on Monday to witness Walrath's fate. He told the courtroom that his life had changed forever since his father's death in December 2024. He asked Walrath to imagine if it were a member of his family who was incarcerated and killed by officers.

Collins Correctional Facility was placed on lockdown Wednesday following an incident at the prison earlier in the morning.

Sending care packages to inmates in New York State (NYS) correctional facilities involves adhering to specific guidelines to ensure successful delivery. Here's a comprehensive overview:

Congratulations on our team's achievement! Winning the top local workplace award is a fantastic accomplishment and a testament to the hard work, dedication, and collaborative spirit of everyone involved. It's a reflection of the positive culture and supportive environment we've cultivated within our team, where each member feels valued, motivated, and empowered to do their best work.

Being recognized as a top local workplace not only boosts morale within the team but also enhances our organization's reputation in the community. It demonstrates our commitment to creating a positive work environment that fosters employee satisfaction, engagement, and ultimately, success.

Take this opportunity to celebrate and acknowledge the contributions of each team member. It's moments like these that reinforce the bonds within the team and inspire everyone to continue striving for excellence. Keep up the great work, and here's to even more successes in the future!

For decades, the workings of the prison discipline system had been hidden from public view under a secrecy law adopted at the urging of the state’s powerful law enforcement unions. But after the Legislature repealed that law in 2020, The Marshall Project obtained more than 5,600 records of disciplinary cases against prison employees, for issues ranging from physical abuse of prisoners to sleeping on the job.

The records probably reflect only a fraction of the violence guards have inflicted in New York’s corrections system, experts said. Many prisoners do not file complaints because they fear retaliation or not being believed. And in most of the state’s 44 prisons, officers do not wear body cameras, which sometimes help prove abuse. These records do not detail prisoner attacks on officers, which the department and the guards’ union said have increased in recent years.

Six correctional facilities in upstate New York were closing Thursday as the number of inmates drops across the state prison system. The closings announced in November were expected to save $142 million. The facilities scheduled to close at the end of the business day were..

Six facilities that are part of New York's prison system will close next March amid a decade-long decline in the number of people the state incarcerates. 

The closures, announced Monday by state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision officials, scheduled for March 10, 2022 are: 

• Ogdensburg Correctional Facility
• Moriah Shock Incarceration Correctional Facility
• Willard Drug Treatment Campus
• Southport Correctional Facility
• Downstate Correctional Facility
• Rochester Correctional Facility