Prison sergeant who played role in assault, death of inmate pleads guilty to charges

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - A prison sergeant who played a role in the deadly assault of an inmate has pleaded guilty to charges.

Willie Hedden, 42, a sergeant at Western Illinois Correctional Center in Mt. Sterling, admitted to his role in a May 17, 2018 assault at the prison. In the crime, the inmate, identified as 65-year-old Larry Earvin, was restrained and handcuffed behind his back while posing no physical threat to others, according to prosecutors.

It happened as Earvin was forcibly escorted from his residential unit at the prison to a separate, segregated housing unit.

Earvin suffered multiple broken ribs, a punctured colon and other serious internal injuries. He died in June 2018.

Hedden also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in misleading conduct for falsifying incident reports with the prison that left out references to the assault. The reports said Earvin was taken to staff in the segregation housing unit "without further incident" other than resisting the escort and refusing to walk.

Hedden admitted to misleading Illinois State Police agents by denying knowledge of the assault that he was part of and witnessed. He persuaded a friend, who was a fellow prison employee, to delete a text he sent after the assault in which Hedden admitted to being involved in the assault.

The charges Hedden faced were conspiracy to deprive civil rights, deprivation of civil rights under color of law resulting in bodily injury and death and conspiracy to engage in misleading conduct. Hedden's co-defendants, 52-year-old Todd Sheffler of Mendon and 29-year-old Alex Banta of Quincy, had a status hearing Tuesday afternoon by videoconference.

Both suspects face charges of conspiracy to deprive civil rights, deprivation of civil rights under color of law resulting in bodily injury and death, conspiracy to engage in misleading conduct, and two counts of obstruction of justice.

The statutory penalty for both conspiracy to deprive civil rights and deprivation of civil rights under color of law resulting in bodily injury and death is any imprisonment term of up to life behind bars. Each count of conspiracy to engage in misleading conduct and obstruction carries a maximum statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison.