The Legislature must reform N.Y. prisons
Nick Encalada-Malinowski, NY Daily News — With multiple delays and policy maneuvering, Gov. Hochul bullied the Legislature into the budget of her liking....
Lawmakers eye prison health care, elderly parole amid budget battle
Ethan Geringer-Sameth, Crains New York Business — A package of bills that has floated in Albany for close to a decade would make it easier for imprisoned seniors to receive parole, a measure supporters say is both humane and cost-saving as state lawmakers look for ways to plug a multi-billion-dollar outyear budget gap...
Prison reformers want more accountability at DOCCS
Johan Sheridan / NEWS10-Nexstar — A coalition of advocacy groups has accused New York's Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) of ongoing staff violence and systematic violations of the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Law (HALT Act). The groups cited several deaths in state-run prisons, including the 2022 waterboarding death of Ladale Kennedy at Upstate Correctional Facility and the 2024 beating and death of Robert Brooks at Marcy Correctional Facility. The coalition also condemned visitation restrictions and a ban on family care packages...
More Subway Cops, No Prison Reforms: State of the State 2026
NY Focus / Chris Gelardi — When it comes to criminal justice, the story of this year’s State of the State address is just as much about what Governor Kathy Hochul didn’t mention as what she did...
After a year of crisis, advocates make early push for prison reform
A new report from a Queens state senator’s office contends that violence and racism are endemic throughout New York State prison’s system, and calls on the legislature to pass reforms to prevent a repeat of the crises that engulfed the prisons last year.
Prison reform law signed by governor as final trial is underway for the death of Robert Brooks
News10NBC / Berkeley Brean — GREECE, N.Y. — The final trial related to the death of Robert Brooks began Monday, with opening statements set to begin Tuesday...
New York Times investigation reveals pattern of inmate deaths before Robert Brooks case
7 News WWNY / Lexi Bruening, 7 News Staff — WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) - A recent New York Times investigation claims Robert Brooks may not be the first inmate in New York’s prison system to have died at the hands of corrections officers, reporting that others met a similar fate at state facilities years before...
They, Too, Died After Beatings by Guards. No One Raised an Alarm.
Jan Ransom / New York Times — Two brutal killings, less than three months apart, in New York State’s prison system raised troubling questions: Had other inmates met similar fates?
State lawmakers say they’re not done with prison overhaul in New York
Dan Clark / Times Union — (ALBANY) After striking a deal this month with Gov. Kathy Hochul on the most significant package of prison oversight legislation in years, Democrats in the state Legislature say they’re not done with the New York corrections system...
Legal orgs call on state leaders for prison reform
Noah Powelson / Brooklyn Daily Eagle — A week after Governor Kathy Hochul enacted her first round of clemencies this year, 135 organizations co-signed and published a letter to state leaders demanding more be done to address “the urgent crisis of racist brutality, medical neglect and denial of basic dignity in New York State prisons.” ...
Criminal justice reform groups call on Hochul to commute prison sentences
Rebecca C. Lewis / City & State — More than 130 advocacy groups – including the WFP, NAACP New York Conference and Release Aging People in Prison – called on the governor to reduce the state's prison population...
Parole and sentencing reform left out of omnibus prison reform bill
Rebecca C. Lewis / City & State NY — Criminal justice advocates are chafing at the exclusion of measures they say are necessary to respond to Robert Brooks’ death in a truly meaningful way...