A California inmate already serving life for four murders is now accused of killing his wife during an overnight prison visit.
Prosecutors say 55-year-old David Brinson strangled 62-year-old Stephanie Diane Dowells to death at Mule Creek State Prison in November 2024. Brinson, who was convicted in 1993 of murdering four men during a robbery, has been serving four consecutive life sentences without parole.
According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Brinson called prison staff shortly after 2 a.m. on Nov. 13 to say his wife had passed out. Officers rushed in, began life-saving efforts, and called 911, but Dowells was pronounced dead at 2:51 a.m. Her death was later ruled a homicide by strangulation.
Dowells, a hairdresser from Inglewood, lived with her son, daughter-in-law, and young grandson. Her family has declined to comment publicly, but their attorney, Michael Oppenheimer, called the murder charge “the first step towards getting justice” and criticized the state for not preventing the killing.
Brinson has not entered a plea and is scheduled for arraignment on Sept. 19.
Officials say Dowells’ death is one of two fatal incidents during family visits at Mule Creek within months. In July 2024, 47-year-old Tania Thomas was killed while visiting her husband, inmate Anthony Curry, who has since been charged with her murder.
District Attorney Todd Riebe said these are the first violent acts during family visits at Mule Creek he’s seen in more than 25 years on the job.
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Author: thedailycrime1
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