The hiring process for people who investigate abuse in Illinois prisons is mismanaged, the state says

** FILE ** An unidentified death row inmate looks out of his cell at Pontiac Correctional Institution. (SETH PERLMAN, AP)

Eddie Durell had a warning that could have saved Larry Earvin’s life.

Durell worked in internal affairs at Western Illinois Correctional Center in 2017 when an incarcerated man there complained of abuse by guards. Roger Latimer said he was beaten in a small vestibule at the prison where there were no cameras. Durell was supposed to investigate the claim, but he never completed the investigation. Prison documents obtained by WBEZ show Durell explained that he was working on other cases and was “overwhelmed.”