A former employee of the Capital District Juvenile Secure Detention Facility
in Colonie charged in the death of a 19-year-old inmate.
State Justice Center cleared the employee, who served prison time,
to work at facility
COLONIE – A Schenectady man who worked at the Capital District Juvenile Secure Detention Facility, a jail for individuals under 19, turned himself in to Colonie police on Wednesday, Oct. 16, to face charges in the death of a young inmate.
Michael Dunsmore, 48, was employed at the Albany Shaker Road facility when 19-year-old Caprist McBrown died of a fentanyl overdose on Oct. 27, 2022. Dunsmore was charged with criminally negligent homicide, a felony, following a grand jury indictment unsealed in Albany County Court. The court issued an arrest warrant for Dunsmore.
McBrown’s family filed a civil lawsuit in 2023, alleging an unnamed employee provided him the drug and that other staff failed to perform mandatory checks, leading to his death. The lawsuit against the facility and its operator, Berkshire Farm Center & Services for Youth, was settled for an undisclosed amount but prompted a criminal investigation.
In an interview with the Times Union, attorney Daniel Smalls, who represented McBrown’s family, questioned how Dunsmore, with a history of convictions and parole as recently as March 2020, was hired to work at a facility for teenagers charged with serious crimes.
Dunsmore’s employment with Berkshire Farm Center & Services for Youth was cleared by the state’s Justice Center, according to the family’s lawsuit. “That right there was extremely surprising,” Smalls told the Times Union. “You’re talking about a correctional facility.”
Dunsmore was processed on the indictment warrant and transported for arraignment in County Court. He is scheduled to return to court on Nov. 26.
According to Channel 13, McBrown was detained at the facility for his involvement in a 2020 gang-related shooting in Schenectady that led to the death of an innocent woman. The Schenectady County District Attorney’s Office previously stated McBrown was one of the shooters but not the individual who killed the woman.
As reported by the Times Union, the facility had faced staffing and safety challenges for at least a year, including the turnover of two executive directors within four months last year. Problems included insufficient staff, unsanitary bathrooms, inadequate space, and limited educational and recreational opportunities for residents. At least one resident was put on suicide watch and hospitalized.
In February 2022, the state Office of Children and Family Services mandated changes after identifying several issues during an inspection. Berkshire Farm Center & Services for Youth, contracted to operate the center, was placed under increased evaluation and a performance improvement plan.
The civil lawsuit states that an autopsy revealed McBrown died from pulmonary edema after choking on his own vomit, with fentanyl and trazodone in his system. McBrown had been prescribed trazodone as a sleep aid.
On the day of his death, McBrown reportedly requested to go to his room because he felt tired and was escorted there. Over the next hour, at least two staff members failed to check on him, violating the facility’s rule requiring checks every 15 minutes. McBrown was found unresponsive at 2:48 p.m. The lawsuit alleges staff were not trained to manage inmate overdoses.
The civil suit was settled for an undisclosed amount.
