A Harford County man serving a six-year sentence for a sex offense was found dead in his cell at the Jessup Correctional Institution Wednesday, authorities said. Police believe his cellmate allegedly killed him.
Robert Joseph Tunnell, 21, formerly of Edgewood and Baltimore, was found dead in his cell with signs of trauma to his body and a string around his neck, police said.
While there is a known suspect in the case, charges are pending and police have not released the suspect's name.
Around 2 a.m. Wednesday, a correctional officer making routine rounds arrived at Tunnell's cell and Tunnell's cellmate allegedly said something to the officer that prompted an emergency response from staff, according to a release from Maryland State Police. It was unclear Thursday what the nature of those statements was.
Tunnell wasn't responding when staff reached him and medical personnel were called. Medics pronounced Tunnell dead at the scene, the news release states.
Tunnell's body showed signs of trauma and investigators found what looked like a shoe string around his neck, according to state police.
The victim's body was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore for an autopsy to determine the official cause of death.
"It is a murder and there is a suspect who has been identified," state police spokesman Greg Shipley said Thursday.
Charges are pending against Tunnell's cellmate. In the mean time, the suspect remains in custody of the Maryland Division of Correction, according to state police.
The two men were being held in a transitional housing area usually designated for inmates brought in from other institutions or being moved for some reason.
"Tunnell was apparently serving a sentence at the Eastern Correctional Institution in Somerset," Shipley said, "I don't know why he was brought to JCI."
According to court records, Tunnell had a violation of probation hearing in the day before he was killed.
He was serving a six-year sentence after entering an Alford Plea on an attempted second-degree sex offense charge on March 12. An Alford Plea means the defendent acknowledges the state has enough evidence to convict, but maintains his innocence. It qualifies as a finding of guilt.
The underlying charges involved inappropriate contact with a boy, age 14, when Tunnell was 19 years old, according to court documents.
2. In my opinion (and its just that, an opinion) anyone who perpetuates sexual violence against a child should be put to death. Cal it lowbrow if you want, but I couldn't care less that my tax dollars don't have to pay for another sex offender to get three hots and a cot.
He maintained his innocence, and it was only an "attempted" crime. There was only a 5 year difference in age. Most all states statutory is less than 4 years different, so do not mistake me here, I am not condoning his actions, but I can see this as a "by months out of range" statutory crime. There are more than enough he-said, she-said, (in this case both "he's,") cases. Not knowing the full context by what we see here, which is really not a lot, we can't have an opinion that is based in fact. Only thing we all can have here is conjecture. On the other hand, I can never see condoning someone's murder. No matter who the victim is. That blatantly defeats our Constitution's purpose, and heralds in the need for a "1984" style of government. Be careful what you wish for. In other words, I do not advocate for ANY type of crime.
But there is a big difference between the state executing someone lawfully, and a convict murdering someone who was not sentenced to die. That you don't get that distinction is what marks you and your ilk as "lowbrow".
I have seen anti-legal system comments on here, with primitive lowbrows endorsing murder.
God, and scared as hell to be in jail in the first place, a man took his life in the middle of the night after beating him. The fact that you all said "he deserved to die" is disgusting. Would you have taken his life if you were given the chance? A 21 year old mentally ill boy, who was always nice and happy before this all happened, and then makes a mistake deserves death? He did NOT deserve death, and those of you people who think he did are horrible people. I may not have known Joe well, but I know enough to tell you that he didn't deserve this. Nobody deserves how he died or these ridiculous comments. Let him rest in peace.