The New York State Attorney General’s Office has identified three officers who were allegedly present during the brutal beating of Robert Brooks. Nicholas Anzalone, Glenn Trombly, and Anthony Farina have all been suspended pending further investigation by the New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision Commissioner. These officers have been named in multiple lawsuits filed by incarcerated individuals, alleging similar incidents of excessive force.
In one lawsuit filed in September 2022, a man named Adam Bauer accused Anzalone of assaulting him unprovoked for smoking a cigarette in a bathroom in 2020. Bauer claimed that after submitting to a search, Anzalone hit him multiple times while other officers either kicked him or watched without intervening. Bauer also alleged that the officers covered up the incident by lying to hospital staff after taking him to a local hospital.
Sergeant Glenn Trombly has also been named in lawsuits, including one where a man named Caleb Bause accused him of using pepper spray on him unprovoked in 2020. Bause claimed that after running to the dorm area, Trombly and Farina arrived and either watched or participated in the assault.
Another lawsuit involving Trombly was filed in 2018 by Equarn White, who alleged that Trombly and other officers beat him up in an empty classroom at Green Haven Correctional Facility. White claimed that Trombly held him down while another officer repeatedly stomped on his testicles.
Recently, video footage of the officers assaulting Robert Brooks was released, showing the officers repeatedly hitting, choking, and kicking him. Glenn Trombly, who had his body cam on during the incident, appeared to stand by and watch the attack unfold.
We have reached out to The New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association for comment on these allegations, but have not received a response yet. It is clear that these cases highlight the need for accountability and transparency within the correctional system to prevent further incidents of abuse and misconduct.
