Family demands answers after mother strangled at a California prison while visiting husband

The family of 62-year-old Stephanie Dowells is demanding answers after the grandmother ended up dead while having an overnight “conjugal visit” with her convicted murderer husband at a California prison, according to reports.

Stephanie Dowells allegedly strangled to death

David Brinson, 54, was found guilty of killing four men in 1993 and was sentenced to life in prison without parole, court records show.

In November, Brinson had an unsupervised visit with wife Dowells at Mule Creek State Prison in Northern California, FOX 40 reported.

Around 2 a.m. on November 13, 2024, Brinson reportedly told prison officials that Dowells had passed out.

Despite attempts to resuscitate her, Dowells was pronounced dead on the scene around 2:50 a.m.

The circumstances behind Dowells death was unclear until recently when the Amador County Coroner ruled her death a homicide as a result of strangulation. No one has been charged in the killing.

Family demands answers

“How could they just let this happen? I just don’t get it,” Dowells’ son, Armand Torres, told KCRA-TV. “My mom was just left alone, and she called for help, I’m sure, and there’s nothing she could do.

Torres believes the prison should be held accountable.

“Given the history that this guy has, we kind of wanted to know how is it even possible for them to be unsupervised?”

CDCR allows for family visits in private “apartment-like facilities” for parents, children, siblings, legal spouses, registered domestic partners, or people who have a bona fide and verified foster relationship.

The prison’s operations manual says prisoners on a family visit must present themselves four times in 24 hours and unscheduled checks can be made at any time, but “every effort shall be made to ensure the privacy of the inmate and their visitor(s),” according to KCRA.

Dowells was a mother to two sons and a grandmother to six, according to her family.

She was a hairstylist and a small business owner in the Los Angeles area, known to those close to her as “Stevi.”

California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation told KCRA that Dowells’ death “remains under investigation.”