Following the death of inmate Robert Brooks, various aspects of prison life in New York state are coming under new criticism.

Brooks died in December after an incident involving correction officers at Marcy Correctional Facility.

A 2022 investigation by the Correctional Association of New York found that inmates at the prison “expressed a lack of confidence in the grievance process,” reporting “delays and inattentiveness to grievances and fear of retaliation.”

The Prisoners’ Legal Services of New York (PLS) provides legal services to incarcerated individuals throughout the state, helping to secure their rights and ensuring they experience appropriate conditions while in prisons.

“They write to us that they are not getting the medical care they need, that they're not being allowed to visit with their family, that they were beaten by a corrections officer. Those are all the types of cases that we investigate, advocate and when necessary, litigate," PLS Executive Director Karen Murtagh said.

It receives a lot of requests for help – around 10,000 each year.

Complaints of abuse can vary from reports of jail time not being properly credited, to personal property disappearing, to beatings or sexual abuse by both inmates and correction officers.

PLS leadership said there are many challenges for inmates seeking to file a lawsuit over an experience in prison. One of them is the Prison Litigation Reform Act.

It requires inmates to first go through a grievance process, which is not necessarily a simple task.

“Not only is it difficult to file because of all the procedural requirements where you have to be and what you have to say and how soon you have to file it after the incident, but then filing it can open the person up to retaliation and retribution by staff," Murtagh said.

PLS staff note that’s if the grievance is even filed.

“They just have to trust the officers to deliver the grievance to the grievance office so that it can be processed. But often, the grievances never get there. They never get a response," PLS Senior Supervising Attorney James Bogin said.

Another issue is a lack of education.

Many PLS clients are at a third- or fourth-grade reading level.

“If you're in prison and you haven't had an education, you struggle with reading or you have a mental health issue, it's very difficult to understand your rights and then to protect them. And that's one of the roles plays, plays in providing significant education to the incarcerated population," said Murtagh.

These issues, PLS staff said, are issues faced in prisons across New York.

Spectrum News 1 on Monday reached out to state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), which said retaliation is strictly prohibited and allegations thoroughly investigated. It said it requires written receipt notifications of grievances to incarcerated individuals within seven days of them being submitted.

DOCCS said incarcerated individuals can also report abuse allegations to the Office of Special Investigations (OSI) through a free telephone hotline available to all in DOCCS facilities.

Individuals filed a total of 26,819 grievances in 2023, according to the 2023 DOCCS annual report, including a total of 590 at Marcy, up 17% from 2022, according to the report.