Wives Murdered During Prison Visits | David Brinson and Anthony Curry

Two women walked into California’s Mule Creek State Prison on separate visits, hoping for connection, maybe even healing. Neither walked out alive.

What began as routine family visits ended in tragedy and exposed disturbing cracks in a system designed to keep families close while keeping the public safe. Why were violent offenders granted this kind of access? And how did two women, loved and cherished by their families, end up dead behind prison walls?

This week, I'm telling you about the murders of Stephanie Dowells and Tania Thomas, two women whose lives collided with a program that promised rehabilitation but delivered something worse.

The case of David Brinson and Anthony Curry

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now part of the dark Cast Network. Welcome to indie
podcasts with a Dark Side. Around two am on November thirteenth,
twenty twenty four, at the Mule Creek State Prison in California,
one of the inmates named David Brinson called prison staff
over saying that his wife, sixty two.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
Year old Stephanie Diane Dowells, had quote passed out. Medical
staff gave her CPR and tried to save her. Nine
to one one was also called, but Stephanie was pronounced
dead at two fifty one am. Welcome to Love and
Murder A Heartbreak to Homicide, your weekly true crime podcast
that tells you cases of relationships that turn to murder.

(00:42):
But I always tell each case with the victim in mind,
so you may hear some ranting and ratings. Now, quick
note before we get started, school is back in session,
so I'll be off for the next two weeks. While
I'm away, you will still get irregular content through pre
recorded mini episodes, and of course your bonus episodes will
still be coming out. Now, I do invite you to

(01:04):
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(01:25):
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Head on over to patreon dot com forward Slash Love
and Murder and become part of the lambfam today and now,
as I remind you each Monday, grab your butts, grab
your glass of apple juice, and let's get back into
this case of love and murder. After Stephanie's death, David's

(01:46):
story changed to some He said she passed out on
the floor. To others, he claimed she collapsed on to bed,
so they were like, well, which one is it. Stephanie's
body was sent for autopsy, and instead of saying that
her death was natural, the coroner said that she had
been strangled to death during her routine family visit. Stephanie

(02:08):
was a hairdresser from Inglewood who lived with her son,
daughter in law, and young grandson. Her family describes her
as caring and devoted, someone who believed her husband could
still turn his life around. Her daughter in law, Natalie Jimenez,
said Stephanie and David would read together during visits, and
she encouraged his studies while in prison. But David Brinson's

(02:30):
past was anything but hopeful. At fifty four years old,
he was already serving four consecutive life sentences for murdering
four men during a robbery in the nineties. He'd been
incarcerated at Mule Creek since nineteen ninety four. Stephanie was
at the prison through California's Family Visit Program, an initiative

(02:53):
that allows inmates to spend up to forty hours with
family members in private, apartment style units. Is meant to
strengthen family ties and encourage rehabilitation, but it also relies
heavily on privacy, with only occasional, unscheduled checks. This is
a prison. He's serving four life sentences. Where did you think?

(03:18):
How did you think this was a good? I Is
it just me? Please stop right now and go to
the comments and tell me if it's just me. For
months after her death, no charges were filed as investigators
continued to build their case. Then, on August thirteenth, twenty
twenty five, David was officially charged with murder. Amateur County

(03:41):
District Attorney Todd Reebe said the evidence came from both
prison records and the autopsy. David has not yet entered
a plea deal, and his arraignment is set for September nineteenth,
twenty twenty five. I mean, what difference does it make.
He's already serving four life sentences. What difference is it
going to make. I honestly don't even understand why you're

(04:02):
wasting taxpayers' money to bring another charge against him and
go to trial and all this stuff.

Speaker 3 (04:08):
What difference?

Speaker 2 (04:11):
I don't get it. And I'm not saying she doesn't
need justice, don't get me wrong. What I'm saying is
why are you wasting money to bring this to trial?
When what else could have happened in that room? He
was literally the only one there. It literally showed that
she was strangled. Do you think she strangled herself? And

(04:32):
he's already serving for life sentences? Like, That's what I'm saying.
I'm totally not saying she doesn't deserve justice. I'm just
saying this is crazy Stephanie's family is devastated. Her son
Arman Torres, told reporters quote, how could they just let
this happen? I just don't get it. Given the history
that this guy has, we kind of wanted to know.

(04:54):
How is it even possible for them to be unsupervised?
My mom just left alone, and she called for help.
I'm sure, and there's nothing she could do armound. I
completely agree, this is what I was saying. How are
you just getting a guy who's on four life sentence
and so in his head he has nothing to lose?
How are you letting him sit in a room unsupervised

(05:16):
with somebody? I don't get it. And then you're about
to run him through a trial like will gear him
a fear of trial? Who else could have done it?
Your ear?

Speaker 3 (05:26):
Like?

Speaker 2 (05:26):
Giving him a setup for him to plead guilty or
not guilty? And if he pleads what not guilty? What
are you gonna put forth a whole trial to find
out the proof?

Speaker 4 (05:35):
Like?

Speaker 2 (05:35):
I don't m I don't understand this. The family's attorney,
Michael Oppenheimer, released a statement saying, quote, while nothing can
bring Stephanie back to her family, this is the first
step towards getting justice for her brutal murder. This and
other murders should have never happened and could have been
prevented by the State of California. I mean, I guess

(05:55):
if this is in order to sue the State of
California and and this prison system so that this doesn't
happen to another family member, I guess I can see
why it's going to trial. But other than that, like
I said, he's already serving for life sentences. I mean,
would it be crass of me to say, just tack
on something else because I mean, he's not getting out anyway.

(06:18):
Is that wrong of me to say all the signs
point to he did it. That's the only reason I
would say something like that. Is that wrong of me
to say that? I could be wrong? Let me know
In the comments below. The Dowells family, along with the
family of another victim, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit
against the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. They argue

(06:41):
that the prison failed to protect visitors and ignore critical
safety protocols. You heard me correctly, though, I said the
Dowells family, along with the family of another victim, this
is not the first time this has happened just four
months ago. Four months earlier, on July one, twenty twenty four,

(07:03):
forty seven year old Tanya Thomas was found unconscious inside
a family visiting unit at Mule Creek State Prison. Staff
discovered her unconscious and tried to save her. Sound familiar,
but she didn't survive. In December twenty twenty four, the
Amadour County Coroner's Office ruled her death a homicide. Tanya

(07:24):
Thomas was described as someone who quote lived her life
to the fullest, even when battle in lupus since her
teenage year. The autoimmune disease required daily medication and regular dialysis,
but she refused to let it define her. She raised
the son, who is now twenty five and servant in
the Air Force, and spent years working for the San

(07:45):
Francisco Unified School District. At the time of her death,
she was servant as a mentor for developmentally delayed adults.
Her cousin, Janin Rojo spoke of their bond, saying, quote,
we literally have been together since birth. We were like sisters.
Tanya's husband, forty eight year old Anthony Curry, was serving

(08:06):
a life sentence for attempted second degree murder, convicted for
shooting his then girlfriend, nineteen year old Sinata Browning in
the head back in nineteen ninety nine. And this is
the person you said should have family visits, unsupervised family visits.

Speaker 3 (08:27):
This is that person.

Speaker 2 (08:29):
Tanya survived, but was left permanently blind, partially paralyzed, and
without memory of the attack. Anthony was also serving a
thirteen year sentence for carjacket. This is the person that
you were like. You know he deserves unsupervised visitation despite
his violent past. Tanya had reconnected with Anthony. They secretly

(08:52):
married in twenty twenty three, a decision her family never
knew about and probably wouldn't have supported. The two also
shared the twenty five year old son. Just months before
her death in January twenty twenty four, Anthony was denied parole,
but told Tanya to quote wait for him. By March
twenty twenty five, after reviewing autopsy details of the prison's investigation,

(09:14):
Amateur County District Attorney Todd Reebe formally charged Anthony with
murder in connection to Tanya's death. On April fourth, twenty
twenty five, Anthony appeared by video from Pelican Bay State Prison,
where he'd been transferred after the murder. In court, he
pled not guilty and demanded a quote speedy trial. D

(09:36):
you see what I'm saying, that's the same thing that
Dave is gonna do. He's gonna say not guilty, and
then what are you gonna do? Like, I don't Uh,
it's frustrating to me. Attorney Reebe said that this was unusual.
Most defendants in a murder case waive that right because
of the gravity of the charge. So what he's saying
is most people, most defendants do not request a speedy

(10:01):
trial because of the gravity of the charge, and they
want to make sure that they get a fair trial,
not just a fast trial. To get this over with.
A preliminary hearing was scheduled for April eighteenth, twenty twenty five,
where prosecutors would lay out the evidence and witness testimony
before a judge to decide if the case should move
forward to trial. Anthony's defense attorney offered no public comments

(10:24):
because I mean, literally, what could you say? Again, he's
the only one in the room with her, just another
case of who else could have done it? The defense
attorney said that he still needed to meet with his
client and review discovery from the prosecution again, discovery of
what Attorney Rebe said, quote, it's very concerning. It's unprecedented

(10:46):
in my experience, it's unprecedented in the facility. I've never
seen anything like this. So this is uncharted territory, at
least for me, in more than twenty five years as
a DA these are the first violent insect during family
visits he has ever seen at Mule Creek. I mean,
if it happened one time, I'm shutting it down, like

(11:07):
I'm not waiting for Maybe it was just a fluke.
Let's do it a second time, Let's do it a
third time. The first time that was the fluke and
the story not happening again. That's just my opinion. As
of now, going back to David, he still wait in
arraignment and the legal process is still in its early stages.
And although Anthony was supposed to be in court, I've
seen no updates on his case either. But Stephanie's family

(11:30):
and Tanya's are demanding justice and change. Both are calling
for the state to reevaluate its visitation policies, warning that
without reform, more tragedies could follow. I mean, I don't
understand how you still have this open or you haven't
reformed it immediately. I would be like anybody with like

(11:50):
violent charges like shooting their ex girlfriend in their head,
burdering four people, stuff like that, you wouldn't get visitation.
That's just that I'm not saying shut it down completely,
but it's like it's just crazy, Like maybe it's me.
Maybe I'm just being way too harsh. Let me know

(12:11):
your thoughts in the comments below, because if I'm wrong,
if I'm being too harsh, literally phar real, like bring
me down. These incidents just four months apart, has actually
thrown a light on California's family visit program. Like I
told you before, these visits take place in private, apartment
style units that are on the prison grounds, and they

(12:34):
can last up to forty hours. You have them alone
up to forty hours. According to the Apartment of Corrections
and Rehabilitation, they're considered a privilege meant to support family
connections and encourage rehabilitation. To qualify, inmates have to show
good behavior and meet certain requirements. Death row inmates, sex offenders,

(12:56):
and those underdisciplinary restrictions are banned, but there's no rule
that ben's people convicted of violent crimes which is what
I'm saying. This dude murdered four people. The other one
shot his ex girlfriend in the back of the head.
Are these examples of people who should be in this
program unsupervised? I mean, you can see your family if

(13:19):
you want, but it's not going to be unsupervised in
an apartment alone for up to forty hours. You know
what I'm saying. That's insane that you are doing this.
Security for these visits is minimal. Inmates have to show
up for count four times within a twenty four hour period,
and watch commanders can order surprise inspections, can not that

(13:43):
it's definite that this is gonna happen. It might happen,
But the manual also makes it clear that privacy should
be protected as much Oh my god, are you theory?
The manual makes it clear that privacy should be protected
as much much as possible for both the inmate and
their visitors. And that's exactly what the families of both

(14:06):
victims are furious about. Janine said, quote, something needs to
be done, and it should have been done two homicides ago.
I'm sick to my stomach that this happened to Tanya.
But then it happened again just months after her to Stephanie.
It should have been prevented. Both families believe neither Anthony
nor David should have been granted unsupervised visits given their

(14:28):
violent pasts. They want the eligibility rules rewritten and more
safety checks during visits to prevent another tragedy. My case is,
how are we still asking for this, like the evidence
is clear that we need this rewritten. How is it
not like that should have been overnighted? And Janine raised
another point, quote One thing I do want to know

(14:52):
is how many other times has this happened in Mule
Creek and it's gone undetected? If Stephanie's family and Tanya's
family did then come forward, the public would not have known.
That is an excellent point. How many times for them
to continue acting so cavalier about this? How many times
has this happened before? That's an interesting point, Janine. The

(15:14):
two murders exposed a dangerous floor in the system. A
program meant to promote rehabilitation instead ended with two women dead.
So what's the balance between rehabilitation and safety? Should violent
offenders with a history like David's or Anthony's ever be
left alone with family members, or is the system overlooking
serious risks in the name of privacy. Let me know

(15:37):
your thoughts in the comments below. I definitely want to
hear from you. I want to know if I was
going off the deep end. Maybe I'm being too harsh.
Tell me what you think in the comments below, and
before I end this episode for today, First of all,
I want to thank you for bearing with me with
this many episode, just trying to get the school here
started off right and without stress. So this is why

(15:58):
it's just many episodes for the next two weeks and
then after that I'll be back with your full episodes.
But I also want to have a short heart to
heart with you before I end this episode. Love and
Murder exists because of listeners like you, my Lambs. But
every case you hear on LAMB takes hours, sometimes days,
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(16:21):
And I do it all alone six days a week,
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Despite some of the comments that I get where they
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the story, or I don't even know why I would
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(16:43):
I always want to make sure that every detail is
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(17:05):
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(17:27):
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(17:50):
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(18:11):
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(18:54):
slash love and murder. Thank you for your support, thank
you for being here, thank you for listening all the
way to time the end, and also thank you for
dealing with me throughout this break that I'm on while
I get my kids situated in school. And before we
end this episode, I want to remind you, like I
end every Monday episode, that's say it with.

Speaker 3 (19:12):
Me now, all love and no murder.

Speaker 2 (19:16):
Y'all stay tuned for my commercial guests.

Speaker 3 (19:19):
Bye.

Speaker 4 (19:37):
There are over two hundred thousand unsolved homicides in the
United States justice system right now, and many of those
cases haven't seen the light of day in years, decades.
In some instances, the case files and evidence are sitting
in a box on a dusty shelf in a basement,

(20:00):
gotten by law enforcement and the media, while the families
and friends left behind wait for answers and fight for justice.
Sometimes there is nobody left to remember or to speak
up on behalf of the victim. I'm Marlene and I'm
Leah and that is exactly what Box and the Basement
sets out to do. To shine a light on those

(20:22):
forgotten victims and to bring attention to unsolved murders and disappearances.
We want to help families tell their stories, and we
want to assist the families and friends of victims find
the resources and support they need to continue their fight
for justice. Join us every Thursday for new episodes of
Box and the Basement wherever you find your podcasts.