William Crowder
William Crowder, 35, was held at Menard Correctional Center in Chester, Illinois, when he died in March 2013. His sister Emmerine wrote that he often asked about her children and family and always wanted news from life outside, and she still keeps his letters. A prison investigation report says he was strangled by his cellmate, and his cellmate says he asked officers to move him the night before and they did not respond. Crowder's family says they did not know he had been sharing a cell until his death, and his sister learned of it from a prison call and a TV news report. Authorities were still awaiting autopsy results when the death was first reported.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody (neglect alleged). The prison investigation report and cellmate Frank Wings say the cellmate strangled him, and Wings says he asked officers to move him the night before and they did not respond.
Reported by: Menard Correctional Center prison investigation report (the agency that held him); Frank Wings's court plea in the death (court).