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An illustration shows three correctional officers in the foreground, in shades of dark gray. In the background, there are three correctional officers in light gray. Two of the officers are holding up the arms of an incarcerated person in an orange uniform, while one officer covers the incarcerated person's mouth.

How New York’s Abusive Guards Keep Their Jobs

Corrections officers who brutalized prisoners in facilities across the state were seldom fired — protected by a culture of cover-ups and a disciplinary system that favors them.

Dion MBD for The Marshall Project
News
Bill Would Change How New York Disciplines Abusive Prison Guards
A 2023 investigation by The Marshall Project exposed how the prison department failed to fire officers it accused of abuse.
An illustration shows a group of tiny figures of correctional officers in light blue shirts and dark blue pants interacting in small groups with incarcerated people in orange prison uniforms. Some of the officers are kicking, punching, or threatening incarcerated people. A larger group of tiny figures of correctional officers and incarcerated people surround the center group but are grayed out.
Correctional officers are being blocked from a door of a prison on the left side of an illustration. They walk around the corner, removing their uniforms, only to be welcomed back to a door on the right side of the prison. Their uniforms are returned to them in the process.
Feature December 14
‘A Crazy System’: How Arbitration Returns Abusive Guards to New York Prisons
Over a 12-year span, three out of every four state correctional officers fired for abuse or covering it up got their jobs back.
By and
Correctional officers are being blocked on the left side of an illustration. They walk around a corner, removing their uniforms, only to be welcomed back on the right side of the illustration. Their uniforms are returned to them in the process.
Feature December 14
How We Investigated Abusive Prison Guards Getting Their Jobs Back in New York
The Marshall Project analyzed 12 years of arbitration cases that involved officers committing abuse or covering it up.
By and
An illustration shows three correctional officers in the foreground, in shades of dark gray. In the background, there are three correctional officers in light gray. Two of the officers are holding up the arms of an incarcerated person in an orange uniform, while one officer covers the incarcerated person's mouth.
News May 22, 2023
We Spent Two Years Investigating Abuse by Prison Guards in New York. Here Are Five Takeaways.
The state fails to fire most corrections officers it accuses of violence against prisoners or covering up abuse.
By and
An illustration shows a line of correctional officers with their arms linked, in shades of gray, There's an opening in the line, which shows a correctional officer being protected and escorted away by two other officers, in shades of blue and purple.
Feature May 22, 2023
How a ‘Blue Wall’ Inside New York State Prisons Protects Abusive Guards
Records and interviews reveal a culture of cover-ups among corrections officers who falsify reports and send beating victims to solitary confinement.
By , and
An illustration shows a correctional officer's light blue shirt and dark blue pants neatly folded in a pile. Loose sheets of paper fly above the shirt.
News May 19
What Do People Not Understand About Working in Prisons and Jails?
Fill out a short form to let us know what issues matter most in your workplace.
By The Marshall Project
Analysis May 19, 2023
How We Investigated Abuse by Prison Guards in New York
The Marshall Project examined 12 years of employee discipline data and hundreds of prisoner lawsuits.
By
Feature May 19, 2023
In New York Prisons, Guards Who Brutalize Prisoners Rarely Get Fired
Records obtained by The Marshall Project reveal a state discipline system that fails to hold many guards accountable.
By , and
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