Keila Brown, a New York City Department of Corrections employee, was arrested at 8:25 a.m. on Tuesday stemming from an off-duty domestic incident last month.
Brown, 43, was charged with assault and criminal obstruction of breathing, both misdemeanors, regarding an incident that took place in a Bronx residence in the 46 Precinct at approximately 5 p.m. on Jan. 9, a police spokesman told the Bronx Times.
According to the criminal complaint, Brown and her husband got into a verbal dispute before she grabbed his neck with both hands and squeezed, and punched him in the face multiple times.
As a result, her husband suffered substantial pain to his neck, and experienced annoyance, alarm and fear for his safety, according to the complaint.
He is not facing charges from the incident, the police source said.
According to city data, Brown — formerly known as Keila Rivera — has worked for the Department of Corrections (DOC) since August 2004.
Payroll information shows that she worked as a correction officer in Queens, with a salary of 85,000 in 2020, which increased to $92,000 in 2021.
A Department of Corrections spokesperson told the Bronx Times that Brown works in the Applicant Investigation Unit, which is responsible for ensuring the department hires the most qualified candidates to join the department as correction officers.
A May 2018 report released by the city Department of Investigation identified various candidates hired by DOC with arrest records.
The corrections department’s policy on employee arrests depends on the charges, and any employee arrested on felony charges is immediately suspended, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson did not answer whether Brown’s charges have impacted her employment.
Brown does not have a record of arrests in New York state prior to this incident, according to police.
