Pictured is the entrance to the Lakeview Correctional Facility.

An inmate connected to a brutal attack on a counselor and officer at the Lakeview Shock Incarceration Facility in Brocton is facing charges in the February incident.

Early Tuesday, a secret indictment authorized in April by a Chautauqua County Grand Jury was unsealed in County Court charging one Jkendric Agee with two counts of second-degree assault, a class D violent felony, against the employees.

At Agee’s arraignment on the indictment, County Court Judge David Foley entered a “not guilty” plea on his behalf and set bail at $250,000 cash, or in the alternative, $500,000 secured by property bond, or $500,000 secured by the posting of 10%. The court then scheduled a Discovery Conference for June 22 and remanded Agee into custody. He was then returned to Attica Correctional Facility where he has been housed since the attacks.

According to Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt, the assaults are alleged to have occurred while the civilian employee, an Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator, was providing instruction to Agee and other prison inmates inside a locked program room at the facility pursuant to the New York Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Act (the “HALT Act”). Enacted in 2022, the HALT Act strictly limits the use of solitary confinement as a disciplinary measure to a maximum of 15 consecutive days, and requires the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) to provide therapeutic programming to inmates.

The civilian employee was alone in a locked program room instructing the inmates when Agee assaulted her. He and the other inmates were neither shackled nor restrained at the time. He is innocent under the law until a jury finds otherwise.

“No one should ever have to earn a living while in fear for their personal safety or that of their co-workers,” Schmidt said. “Unless you’ve experienced it for yourself, and I hope no person reading this ever does, an unprovoked attack doesn’t just threaten bodily harm and one’s physical safety but leaves behind substantial emotional scars that can last a lifetime. There is no place in this community, and certainly not in the workplace, for any person who attacks and assaults another person without justification. We take these cases very seriously and will aggressively pursue all options for holding those persons who hurt others accountable under the law to the fullest extent possible.”

The attack began when the inmate, initially seated in his chair, suddenly sprang up and approached the counselor, striking her repeatedly in the face and head. As the counselor attempted to retreat, the inmate continued to assault her, she fell and struck her head on a metal desk and then she fell to the floor, still under assault. The officer outside the classroom immediately called for a response while the counselor attempted to defend herself, kicking the inmate in the legs and groin to fend him off.

“This indictment sends a clear message that violent assaults on correctional staff will be met with swift accountability,” said Daniel F. Martuscello III, Department of Corrections and Community Supervision commissioner. “Our officers and civilian staff report to work each day to maintain safety and order and deliver rehabilitative services in challenging environments. They deserve to do so without fear of violence, and DOCCS will continue working with our law enforcement partners to ensure those who attack staff are fully prosecuted. I also want to thank District Attorney Schmidt for his partnership and commitment to pursuing justice in this case.”

The counselor sustained injuries to her jaw, neck, and head, while the officer suffered swelling and pain to the back of his head. Both were transported to Westfield Hospital, where medical staff diagnosed the officer with a concussion. A second officer, who was injured while assisting in the inmate’s restraint, was treated for shoulder and elbow injuries at the facility.

Agee was previously convicted of third-degree attempted criminal possession of a controlled substance in Niagara County in 2024.