A man sentenced to life in jail for murdering his two-year-old daughter died in a Tucson prison.
According to the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry, Shawn Ryan Grell, 50, died on April 19. The cause of death has not been revealed, although all inmate fatalities are being probed.
Grell was found guilty of first-degree murder in the 1999 killing of his daughter. According to police, he doused her with gasoline and lit her on fire.
According to authorities, the girl died on December 2, 1999.
Grell had picked up his kid from daycare that day and taken her to McDonald’s for dinner. Around 7:15 p.m., he brought the child to a desert near Mesa, poured gasoline on her, and set her on fire.
Prosecutors said the 2-year-old crawled roughly 10 feet while on fire before burning to death. Her body was discovered the following morning. Grell admitted everything.
Grell was sentenced to death. However, in 2013, the Arizona Supreme Court found unanimously that he had mental retardation and therefore could not be executed under federal law.
The top court described the killing as “horrific” and said it was distressing for the family.
Reference: Man who burned his 2-year-old daughter to death dies in prison