A Tale of Inmate Torture & Murder in an Alabama Prison

Daniel Terry Williams was a 22-year-old inmate at Alabama’s Staton Correctional Facility serving a year sentence on a theft charge when he was drugged, hogtied, beaten, tortured, raped, and "rented out" to inmates by an inmate accused of at least nine other violent attacks during his five-year stay at various Alabama prisons. The attack against Williams lasted at least two days, a period in which he suffered agonizing cruelty and abuse. The attack left Williams brain dead. His family removed him from life support on November 9, 2023.

Days of Torture, “Not an Overdose”

Andrew Menefee, a lawyer for the Williams family, told media outlets that another inmate tortured Williams, who had been tied up for at least two days, held in a corner of a housing form, forced to consume drugs against his will, physically assaulted, sexually assaulted, and rented out for ‘sexual assault’ until he fell unconscious.

On October 25, 2023, Joseph Headley, a warden at Staton with more than 40 complaints filed against him by inmates alleging everything from brutality to failure to protect them, called Daniel’s father, Terry, and stepmother, Taylor Bostic, to alert them that Daniel overdosed at the prison and had been hospitalized on life support at Jackson Hospital.

Williams’ family immediately knew Daniel had not suffered an overdose. His body was black and blue, riddled with bruises, and swollen. Marks on his hands and ankles suggested he had been bound. Doctors confirmed their suspicions and stated Daniel’s body showed clear signs of abuse, including “visible hand print bruises between Daniel’s legs.”

Doctors informed Daniel’s family that he would never recover from his injuries and could not sustain life without some form of support. The family made the painstaking decision to remove him from life support, while Warden Headley sent the dying man to Kilby Correctional Facility. He passed away shortly after arriving at the facility.

Inmates reportedly provided the family with details of Williams’ horrific final days.

Prior History of Sexual and Violent Assaults

The inmate accused of the heinous attack against Williams had the following complaints filed against him by other inmates since 2017:

• Stabbing, sexual assault in February 2017
• Sexual assault in April 2018
• Attempted stabbing 2019
• Sexual assault May 2019
• Harassing a man for sex in November 2019
• Rape September 2022
• Threatened to kill an inmate over a $10 debt in August 2022
• Assault October 2022
• Selling drugs

The inmate received no disciplinary action in any of the nine incidents. The standard protocol per prison policy would have been to place the unnamed violent inmate in segregation housing, a step that could have prevented the additional attacks and Williams’ murder.

A Perfect Score

Since the incidents were not recorded as disciplinary actions against the inmate, he earned a “perfect score” during an October 2023 risk assessment. The perfect score allowed him to remain in minimum security housing, despite his history of repeated sexual assaults and violent attacks.

Prison officials found Williams lying battered and unconscious in the inmate’s assigned bed space nine days after the perfect score assessment.

Mr. Terry Williams told ABC 33/40 News he hopes people will come together and demand change in prison systems. He told the news station:

"Everybody stick together; keep this going. Change isn't going to happen unless we stick together. Don't let this die down."

I send my sincere condolences to the Williams family. I hope Daniel gets the justice he deserves.

Thank you for reading this story. Check out the links below if you want more information about Daniel Williams and the situation going on behind closed doors at Alabama prisons.

Sources:

https://www.al.com/news/2024/01/who-killed-daniel-williams-a-tale-of-terror-in-alabama-prisons.html

https://abc3340.com/news/local/family-and-friends-remember-daniel-williams-investigation-into-his-brutal-death-in-al-prison-continues-adoc-prison-death

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12776981/Alabama-prison-warden-Joseph-Headley-Daniel-Williams-lawsuits-brutality-inmates.html