A father, recently sentenced for DUI, was tragically killed just hours after entering a Pennsylvania state prison for a 90-day term, according to officials.
Eric Gaynor, 41, was discovered in his cell at Cumberland County on October 23 with serious injuries, including a swollen brain. This was reportedly after another inmate claimed to have heard him shouting for help, saying phrases like, “Stop!” and “What did I do to you?” as stated in court documents.
“It was less than a day since I dropped him off,” his devastated girlfriend, Tessa Schaub, recounted, mentioning how she received the unfortunate call from prison officials.
The father of one had received a sentence on October 21 for drunk driving after his vehicle went down an embankment in Silver Spring Township the previous November. Schaub recalled reassuring him upon dropping him off, saying, “Don’t worry. This is one of the most secure prisons, one of the nicest prisons. You’ll get through this.”
However, authorities allege that his cellmate, 33-year-old D’Angelo Nowlin, from California, attacked him the morning after he was booked, throwing him to the ground and fatally assaulting him.
Another inmate noted hearing noises around 11:50 a.m., including Gaynor’s cries for help and pleas for the attack to stop, as outlined in the probable cause affidavit. One inmate claimed to have seen Nowlin throw Gaynor, who was reportedly defenseless, from his bunk onto the cell floor, where the assault continued.
Gaynor, who was asleep when the attack started, later needed emergency surgery but unfortunately passed away around 6:30 p.m. on October 24, just a day after being attacked and two days after entering the facility.
“This was just a cold-blooded murder,” Gaynor’s brother, Lonnie, expressed. “He had a kind and gentle heart. Eric would never hurt a fly.”
Lonnie added, “He took the better part of me. If I could replace Eric, I would do it in a heartbeat.”
Nowlin has been charged with criminal homicide. He is already serving time for trespassing after refusing to leave a truck stop and is also accused of assaulting someone who asked him to exit.
