KUNA, Idaho — The family of Milo Warnock wants answers after he was beaten to death by another inmate at an Idaho prison in December.
Idaho State Police (ISP) is investigating Warnock’s death -- an ISP spokesman told 7 Investigates earlier this month that their investigation was wrapping up and would be forwarded to the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office “shortly” for review.
As of Wednesday, ISP had not returned calls and emails from 7 Investigates inquiring about the status of the investigation, and the prosecutor’s office said it still doesn’t have the reports from ISP.
As Warnock’s family awaits information they not only blame the man who took his life, but the systems that led to his death.
"Milo was a complicated person. But he was highly intelligent," Warnock's sister Hallie Johnson said, "He was known to be a hard worker. He was a kind, compassionate, sensitive person. But Milo struggled with mental illness for most of his adult life. And that's kind of the crux of the story."
A story Johnson never expected to end so horrifically.
"There's not a day we don't talk about Milo and what has happened. And what what could have been different, what should have been different, what Milo's downfalls were. He is as much in our lives now as he was when he was alive. But it's left a hole," Johnson added.
The Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC) said an inmate beat Warnock to death at the Idaho State Correctional Center (ISCC) on Dec. 10, 2023. She said he had fractures all over his skull and no defensive wounds on him.
Johnson said it happened in his cell where he lived with one other man.
"It's a dangerous environment," Johnson said.
Warnock was sentenced to serve between two and ten years at ISCC in the summer of 2023 after getting his fourth DUI and missing mental health court.
Once in prison, Warnock was given medication for anxiety and bipolar disorder in the evenings instead of the mornings -- he wrote in multiple grievances and messages to family that taking his meds at night kept him awake.
To change that, prison records show he submitted a paper form in a drop box and “cheeked” his medication in the meantime, storing it away.
"He later learned that the facility where F Block is at, they were no longer using the hardcopy forms or the drop box. They had announced previously that you could only make such a request through their online system. You would know that if you had requested a hard copy of the rules and regulations for that facility. You would know that you needed to request that document if you had access to those documents. So in that way it was a bit like he was set up to fail," Johnson said.
Warnock got caught "cheeking" his meds. Because possessing drugs or alcohol in the prison is against the rules, correctional officers gave him a disciplinary offense and sent him to high-security 'close custody'. There, he spent almost 23 hours a day with his cellmate.
An IDOC public information officer explained 'close custody' typically houses inmates who’ve escaped, have serious disciplinary history, or did something dangerous in prison.
Warnock complained about his cellmate in messages to family, saying the man got into fights with other inmates, was an addict and had mental illness.
"I see both individuals - Milo's cellmate and Milo - as people who needed help. It was a dangerous situation to put two people with mental health needs in a cell together for 23 hours a day," Johnson said.
As mentioned, ISP hasn’t publicly said if his cellmate killed him, and the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office hasn’t filed charges.
"Inmates in max don't have access to education, mentorship or chapel. So you take the most troubled people of society, and you strip away anything that might make them better," Johnson told KTVB. "I'm upset that he was in the state's care at the prison where I should have felt like, yeah, it's not a resort, it's not a great place to be. But I, as a sister, should feel like he's gonna come out. And when he comes out, we are going to rally behind him and get him set back up on his feet."
In the wake of Warnock's death - the second beating death at an IDOC facility last year - the Warnocks are not only seeking answers, they’re calling for changes to Idaho’s prison system.
"I don't know if these men needed to be housed in single cell situations - I know that there's overcrowding at the prison," Johnson told 7 Investigates, "I think there should be a distinction between offenders who have been violent either as the crime that got them to prison or if there's a history of violence within the prison walls."
Johnson and her parents would like to see resources like education for people in close custody, more subjectivity around disciplinary actions for inmates’ violations and deeper consideration for who inmates are housed with.
"It's such an odd thing to have stronger feelings about the system that got my brother there than I have about the person who killed him," Johnson said.
But Warnock's family said the story doesn't end with IDOC. Accountability and justice for her brother can also come from the judicial system.
"I would like to know that our judges act with a bit more compassion and mercy. Perhaps we need to invest in training about mental illness and what it means and how to better address those issues. I don't know that there really is justice for Milo. There's not going to be anything that makes me feel better. But if if there's some change that comes about so that there's not another Milo, that could be enough."
In December, IDOC said they moved the suspect to administrative segregation, but wouldn't say who that suspect was.
In a statement sent to 7 Investigates last week, IDOC said:
"We appreciate that Mr. Warnock’s family wants answers, and so do we. It would be inappropriate for us to comment before the facts are fully investigated and made known. It’s equally wrong to attribute what appears to be the actions of one person to the culture of a prison. The investigation is essential to bring Mr. Warnock’s killer to justice."
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