IONE – Mule Creek State Prison (MCSP) officials are investigating the death of an inmate as a possible homicide.
Inmate Joshua McCormick, 36, was found unresponsive in his cell at approximately 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11. Staff immediately initiated lifesaving measures, but McCormick was pronounced dead at 7:33 a.m.
Prison officials have named McCormick’s cellmate, Brandon Dean, 35, as a suspect. Dean was received by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) on March 15, 2001, from San Bernardino County to serve a sentence of 26 years to life with the possibility of parole for first-degree murder and making terrorist threats. Dean has been placed in the prison’s Administrative Segregation Unit as the incident is being investigated.
McCormick was received by CDCR on May 29, 2014, from Shasta County to serve a sentence of 150 years to life with the possibility of parole for three counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder.
MCSP, which opened in 1987, houses approximately 3,500 minimum-, medium- and maximum-security inmates. The prison, located in Amador County, provides educational, medical and mental health services and employs more than 1,400 people.
CONTACT:Lt. Angelo Gonzalez (209) 274-5080
Krissi Khokhobashvili (916) 445-4950