Guards at Rikers Island continue to use brutal force against inmates at an “alarming rate,” punching them in the head, slamming them into walls and then lying about it, according to a report submitted on Monday by a federal monitor overseeing reforms at the jail complex.

Inmates are dragged and kicked while handcuffed, as well as doused with pepper spray when routine verbal commands and de-escalation techniques would suffice, according to the report.

The report, the third published by an independent monitoring team since a federal judge gave approval in 2015 to a sweeping settlement agreement meant to clean up Rikers, paints a pessimistic portrait of conditions at the jails. The number of fights among inmates has spiked, particularly among the youngest. In the last three months of 2016, officers sustained more injuries than inmates did.

“While the reforms required by the consent judgment are far too new to have resulted in significant decreases in inmate violence, the rates of violence were not expected to increase,” the report said.