The family of Robert Brooks, who was beaten to death last month at an upstate New York prison, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Wednesday against the 17 officers under investigation in the case. Brooks, a 43-year-old Black man, was punched, kicked, choked and manhandled in the Dec. 9 beating at Marcy Correctional Facility north of Utica. He died the following day. “Our family is devastated. But we are also committed. We are going to use our agony to fight for justice,” Brooks’ brother, Jared Ricks, said Wednesday. “We want these killers prosecuted. We want change.” Robert Brooks Jr. speaks during a news conference as his lawyer Steve Schwarz, left and Jared Ricks, listen in Rochester, N.Y., Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Carolyn Thompson) The 17 corrections officers named in the lawsuit were all suspended pending an investigation into Brooks’ death. An initial autopsy ruled Brooks died from asphyxia due to compression of his neck. Brooks was transferred to Marcy from Mohawk Correctional Facility, just down the road, on Dec. 9 and brought to the prison infirmary. The reason for his transfer has not been publicly explained. After Brooks was brought into the facility with his hands cuffed behind his back and his legs shackled, several guards began punching him in the face, torso and legs. Guards also grabbed him by his neck, hit him with his own shoe and held him down with their hands over his mouth and nose. The assault was captured on bodycam video that was released publicly by the New York attorney general’s office two weeks later. However, Attorney General Letitia James recused herself from the case and appointed a special prosecutor to handle the investigation. Body camera footage shows officers beating inmate Robert Brooks at the Marcy Correctional Facility in Oneida County, NY on December 9th. Brooks died of his injuries the following day. (NY Attorney General) The Brooks family’s civil lawsuit, separate from the criminal investigation, seeks unspecified damages and argues the officers violated Brooks’ civil rights by beating him to death. “As Marcy staff beat Robert to death, they obviously believed that their actions would never see the light of day,” said Elizabeth Mazur, an attorney representing the family. “Although the video is difficult to watch, it holds a mirror up to the violence and abuse Marcy prisoners face on a regular basis. It reveals what Marcy staff will do when they believe no one is watching.”