*A tragic incident unfolded at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, California, when a 62-year-old woman, Stephanie Dowells, was allegedly strangled by her incarcerated husband, David Brinson, during a conjugal visit.
Authorities say Brinson, a convicted mass murderer, called officers early on November 13, 2024, reporting that his wife had passed out. Despite immediate efforts to revive her, Dowells was pronounced dead an hour later, The Sun reports.
The coroner’s office later confirmed that Dowells had died from strangulation. Brinson was then relocated to the California Health Care Facility in Stockton, which serves inmates with mental health needs. Prosecutors are waiting for the coroner’s final report before officially filing charges against Brinson for his wife’s murder.
In the wake of her death, a GoFundMe campaign raised over $16,000 for her grieving family.
Her family members described Dowells as a devoted woman who visited her husband to provide spiritual guidance.
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⚠️ WARNING: This post contains details of a violent crime
Stephanie Dowells, 62, was strangled to death during a conjugal visit with her husband, David Brinson, a convicted killer serving four consecutive life sentences for the 1993 murders of four people. The incident occurred… pic.twitter.com/xCVn8KVOef
— True Crime Updates (@TrueCrimeUpdat) March 22, 2025
“They would read the Bible together. He was in school in there because she was pushing him to try to be this better person,” her daughter-in-law, Nataly Jimenez, stated.
Dowells’ son, Armand Torres, voiced frustration over the prison’s role in the tragedy, questioning the level of oversight during conjugal visits.
“How could they just let this happen? I just don’t get it,” he said. “My mom was just left alone, and she called for help, I’m sure, and there’s nothing she could do.”
Torres added, “Given the history that this guy has, we kind of wanted to know how is it even possible for them to be unsupervised?”
Brinson, 54, was convicted in 1993 for the 1990 murders of four men during a robbery in Los Angeles. He received four consecutive life sentences without parole in 1994. Despite his violent past, he was granted conjugal visits, which the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) describes as private, apartment-style visits lasting up to 40 hours. A CDCR spokesperson stated that such visits are a privilege granted only to inmates with sustained good behavior who meet strict eligibility criteria.
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