Watchdog Finds Prison Failures Before Whitey Bulger Killing

WASHINGTON—The beating death of notorious gangster James “Whitey” Bulger at the hands of fellow inmates was the result of multiple layers of management failures, widespread incompetence, and flawed policies at the Bureau of Prisons, the Justice Department’s inspector general said in a report.
At least six bureau workers should be disciplined, the watchdog concluded after the multiyear investigation into how the 89-year-old was killed in his cell hours after the FBI informant arrived at a troubled West Virginia prison.
The inspector general found no evidence of “malicious intent” by any bureau employees, but said a series of bureaucratic blunders left Bulger at the mercy of rival gangsters behind bars. The report did not find evidence of federal criminal violations, focusing instead on prison policies and workings….