With the Lawlessness of NY Prisons Seemingly Knowing No Bounds, the Governor and Legislature Must Finally Implement the HALT Solitary Law, Remove the Prison Commissioner, and Expand Pathways for Release from These Deadly Prisons
(New York) — It has been reported that officers at Attica C.F. beat up Michael Peacock to the point of having broken bones and threw him in solitary confinement under false “assault on staff” charges for testifying against officers in the Robert Brooks murder case, and then refused to allow a reporter to visit him. In response, Jerome R. Wright, Co-Director of the HALT Solitary Campaign and survivor of solitary and officer brutality, released the following statement:
“The lawlessness, brutality, and torture of New York’s prisons knows no bounds. Not only did officers lynch Robert Brooks on video, but now fellow officers beat up a witness in the prosecution of that lynching and threw him in solitary confinement as retaliation for testifying. I know such brutalization first hand. Over thirty years ago, I was viciously beaten and thrown in solitary for testifying in court about racial discrimination in the prisons. The HALT Solitary Law was enacted by supermajorities of the legislature and the Governor after a years-long campaign in order to prevent this exact type of abuse, retaliation, and cover-up. Governor Hochul must act immediately to finally and fully implement the HALT Solitary Law, remove Commissioner Martuscello for overseeing these illegal atrocities, and utilize her clemency powers to release people from these deadly prisons…