USJUN 12, 2025
Killer Dad Who Set His Kid, 2, On Fire Dies In Violent Prison As Medical Examiner Shares Findings
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A father who burned his two-year-old daughter alive died of lung cancer in prison, a new medical report has revealed.
There had been speculation regarding Shawn Ryan Grell’s death at the notorious Arizona State Prison Complex in Tucson on April 19.
The 50-year-old was found dead just two weeks after three inmates were murdered by a fellow prisoner in the same complex, fueling speculation Grell was another of his victims.
Highlights
- Shawn Ryan Grell died in Arizona prison from metastatic lung cancer, with no signs of violence on his body.
- Grell was serving life for brutally burning alive his two-year-old daughter in a remote desert after buying gasoline from Target.
- He expressed deep remorse during his trial, apologizing to his daughter’s family and saying he thought about the crime daily.
- Grell's death came two weeks after inmate Ricky Wassenaar killed three fellow prisoners at the same prison complex.
- Wassenaar, serving 16 life sentences, expressed hatred for child molesters and regretted not killing more inmates.
Shawn Ryan Grell died of lung cancer, a new medical report shows
A medical examiner report obtained by the New York Post has now listed his cause of death as lung cancer and noted there were no injuries to his body.
“The cause of death is ascribed to metastatic non-small cell lung cancer,” Dr. Ryan Bruhns of the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office wrote. “The manner of death is natural.”
“This 50-year-old male inmate at the Arizona State Prison Complex – Tucson … was discovered unresponsive in his bed in the Rincon Unit,” the report added.
“He was pronounced deceased at the scene by an attending physician.”
Grell was serving a life sentence for the brutal murder of his daughter, Kristen Salem, in December 1999.
Court records say that Grell picked up his daughter from daycare and told her they were going to watch the Christmas lights.
They went for lunch at McDonald’s and Grell then drove to a Target store, where he bought a gas can, which he later filled up, Tucson.com reports.
He then drove to a remote desert area, removed his sleeping daughter from the car, and sat her outside before pouring gasoline over her and lighting a match, according to court records.
Grell was convicted of Kirsten’s death following a trial in 2001, as reported in Tucson.com.
Image credits: Department of Corrections
“I'm extremely sorry for what I did to my daughter,” Grell reportedly told a jury deliberating on whether to sentence him to the death penalty.
“There is not a day that’s gone by where I haven't thought about it.”
While he apologized to the family, he could not look directly at her mother, Amber Salem, Tucson.com reported.
“I wish I could take back what I did,” Grell said.
Ricky Wassenaar killed three fellow inmates at the prison complex on April 4
His death at the Arizona State Prison Complex came weeks after Ricky Wassenaar killed three fellow inmates on April 4.
Two of Wassenaar’s victims were serving life sentences for sexual misconduct with a minor and the third had raped and killed a 15-year-old girl.
“Child molesters: I wanted to kill them all. That’s all I can say,” he told the Arizona Mirror in a recent phone call.
Wassenaar, who is serving 16 life sentences for his role in a hostage standoff amid an attempted prison break in 2004, added that his only regret was “not killing more.”