Man charged with killing cellmate at SCI Mercer

A man is charged with homicide after police said he got into a fight with his cellmate at SCI Mercer. 

Pennsylvania State Police said troopers were called to the state correctional institution in Findley Township the morning of June 21 after 28-year-old Donald Stinedurf reported that his cellmate, 32-year-old Joshua Tisak, was unresponsive. Police said Tisak was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. 

According to court paperwork, Stinedurf told police that he was mad Tisak was making "hooch" in their prison cell because Stinedurf wanted to go home during an upcoming parole review. Stinedurf told troopers that he and Tisak "got into it." 

Police said Stinedurf told investigators that while he and Tisak had fought before, it was more serious this time. Stinedurf said he put a sheet up over the cell door window, and when a corrections officer told him to take it down, Stinedurf flushed the toilet to convince the corrections officer the window was covered for privacy.

That night, Stinedurf told troopers that Tisak fell out of his bunk bed three times, and each time, Stinedurf put him back in. According to the criminal complaint, Stinedurf said Tisak kept reassuring him that he was fine, saying, "I'm cool, I'm cool, one hundred percent." 

Stinedurf insisted to troopers that Tisak didn't die during the fight, saying he believed Tisak was "just drunk" when he kept falling out of bed and was having trouble breathing. 

When asked if Stinedurf thought that the fight was bad enough to kill Tisak, according to police, Stinedurf replied, "I hope not man. But it's the only thing that makes sense." 

Police said the coroner's report found that Tisak died as a result of blunt force trauma of the head, neck and trunk. He had buprenorphine and ethanol in his blood, the coroner said. His death was ruled a homicide. 

Stinedurf was charged with criminal homicide, as well as aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person and simple assault.