By Dan Higgins\nNews Enterprise Editor
The Buffalo News, N.Y.
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Eight officers at Collins Correctional Facility were injured badly enough to require treatment at outside hospitals in two separate struggles with inmates during the first week of May, according to the union that represents correction officers.
The most seriously injured officer was hospitalized for several days, the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association said.
The union called the incidents and injuries unacceptable and placed the blame for the violence on New York’s HALT Act, a law that limits the use of segregated housing for inmates.
A spokesman for the state’s Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, which oversees the state’s prison system, provided a statement to The News when asked to comment on the incidents, and on the union’s position that the HALT Act contributes to violence against guards and civilian prison employees.
“Commissioner Martuscello acknowledges the challenges staff face day in and day out to keep our facilities and communities safe. He also has zero tolerance for contraband, including drugs and weapons, which contribute to violence in our facilities,” the statement said, referring to DOCCS Commissioner Daniel Martuscello.
“The safety of all who enter our facilities is a top priority, which is why Commissioner Martuscello and DOCCS has taken decisive, proactive action to strengthen policies and practices that ensure a correctional system that is safe for staff, incarcerated individuals, and community members. Many of these reforms were funded, initiated and implemented independent of any legislative mandate, reflecting the Department’s commitment to continuous improvement and responsible leadership,” the statement said.
Union officials have said the law creates unsafe conditions for prison guards, employees and other inmates, because the restrictions on solitary confinement and similar measures under the HALT Act means that inmates are now acting without any fear of repercussions for their actions.
“To see what the families of our members go through daily, wondering if their loved one will be injured at work, is demoralizing and unacceptable,” said Kenny Gold , the union’s vice president for the Western Region.
The first incident occurred May 2, when an officer found an inmate on the floor in a dorm area of the medium-security prison, apparently intoxicated and screaming incoherently.
While being taken to the infirmary on a stretcher, the inmate allegedly kicked one officer and grabbed another officer’s hands and wrists. Officers reported knee and hand injuries, and one officer had trouble breathing after possible exposure to an unknown substance, the union said.
Two officers were treated at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital, and one officer was hospitalized, according to the union.
The second incident occurred May 5, when staff tried to escort a 51-year-old inmate to programming and found his cell was not in compliance with facility rules.
When ordered to return to his cell, the inmate allegedly charged at officers, struck one in the mouth and continued resisting after officers took him to the ground, according to a statement from the union.
The six officers who required treatment at hospitals after the May 5 incident reported injuries to the elbow, shoulder, knee, hip, shin, hand and face.
None of the injured officers returned to duty that day.
The inmate involved in the May 5 incident is serving a 10- to 12-year sentence for criminal contempt and attempted assault convictions out of New York County . He is eligible for parole in August, the union said.
Last year, a walkout by correction officers at Collins ignited a statewide illegal strike at prisons, as guards cited staffing shortages, mandatory overtime and the environment created by the HALT Act as factors.
Gov. Kathy Hochul fired about 2,000 prison guards who participated in the strike. Within a year, state officials reported about half of the fired correction officers had been rehired.
This story has been edited since it was first published on May 19, 2026. We have added comments from Daniel Martuscello, commissioner of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
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