Relatives of inmates who died in Wisconsin prison shocked guards weren’t charged in their cases

MADISON, Wis. — Relatives of two inmates killed in an outdated, maximum-security prison in Wisconsin say they are stunned. Prosecutors did not file charges in these cases after they multiple charges against the warden and other prison staff in connection with the deaths of two other prisoners.

Four inmates have died at Waupun Correctional Institution in the past year. Authorities on Wednesday announced misconduct and abuse charges against Warden Randall Hepp and eight of his staffers in the deaths of two inmates, Cameron Williams and Donald Maier. The charges have reignited debate about inmate abuse, the chronic shortage of guards in the state prison system and whether the state should replace Waupun and another prison in Green Bay. Both facilities were built in the 19th century.

Dodge County District Attorney Andrea Will has chosen not to charge anyone in the deaths of Dean Hoffmann, who committed suicide in solitary confinement in June 2023, and Tyshun Lemons, who died of a fentanyl overdose in October.

“I’m furious,” said Lemons’ sister, Iema Lemons. “Yesterday I was even more upset. Thanks to a lot of prayer, I’m feeling a little better today.”

Hoffmann’s daughter, Megan Kolb, said she was “ecstatic” when she learned authorities planned to file charges in connection with the deaths of Waupun inmates.

She had “great anxiety” Wednesday morning before watching Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt’s afternoon news conference. She said she screamed when they announced the charges in Williams and Maier’s deaths — “there was finally some accountability,” she said — but was disappointed when they said no one would be charged in her father’s death. She said no one cared that he suffered from mental illness and no one helped him.

“Mental health care is not viewed the same way as physical care,” Kolb says. “No one with the right attitude would do that. So yes, I am disappointed.”

State Department of Corrections officials and Hepp’s attorney, Robert Webb, did not immediately return messages Friday. Reached Wednesday hours after the charges were filed, Webb declined to comment other than to say he was reviewing the allegations.

According to criminal complaints, Williams died of a stroke on October 29, but no one found his body until late the next morning, at least twelve hours later. The nurse, sergeant and lieutenant accused of his death were never believed to have been with him that night.

Maier died on February 22 of dehydration and malnutrition, according to the complaints. He had serious mental health problems but refused or did not take his medication in the eight days leading up to his death. Guards told investigators he had flooded his cell, so they turned off the water. Prosecutors also alleged that Maier was deprived of food for four days prior to his death. Hepp was charged with misconduct in public office in connection with that death.

Separately, Schmidt said during his press conference that Hoffman was not given any medication in the three days leading up to his death, but investigators could not determine whether staff did not give him any or whether he refused to take it.

The documentation of Hoffmann’s medication distribution was “extremely inaccurate,” Schmidt said. Staffers committed policy violations, he said, but none of the violations rose to a criminal level, the sheriff said.

There were no concerns about staff misconduct in Lemons’ death, Schmidt said, adding that investigators are concerned about the widespread smuggling of contraband into the prison. Waupun has been on lockdown since March 2023 due to a shortage of security guards.

Schmidt’s investigation into the deaths is now closed, but the U.S. Department of Corrections’ internal investigation continues. The U.S. Department of Justice is also investigating allegations that prison staff are smuggling contraband into the prison.

It’s been almost a year since Hoffmann died, but Kolb said she’s still angry. She filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit in February alleged that Waupun staff, including Hepp, failed to provide her father with adequate mental health care and medications.

“If you don’t do your job and start torturing and neglecting the people in their care, that’s just as bad as the crimes people commit to get in there,” she said. “I don’t know why they think they are the judge and jury and can determine how these people live their lives.”

Lemons’ sister filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit Thursday, a day after charges in the deaths of Maier and Williams were announced, alleging the state Department of Corrections failed to prevent illegal drugs from entering Waupun .

‘They don’t take care of the people there. They treat them without decency. It’s just disgusting,” she said. “I think they should tear it down. They need to start over with new leadership. They have to take out the whole garbage bin.”