On September 21, 2009, 46-year-old Nathaniel Taylor, a white male inmate at Franklin Correctional Institution in Carrabelle, Florida, was fatally stabbed by his cellmate, 41-year-old Christopher David Lunz, also a white male. Taylor had been serving a sentence for violating parole related to prior convictions for lewd and lascivious assault on a child under 16 and coercion of a sex act on a child by an adult, offenses committed in Volusia County. He was scheduled for release in September 2016.
The attack occurred around 4:55 a.m. when prison officers opened the cell doors and heard Lunz declare he had a hostage. Lunz had used a homemade weapon, known as a shank, to stab Taylor to death. He then took another inmate hostage, who also sustained stab wounds that were not life-threatening. A correctional officer captain successfully negotiated with Lunz to surrender the weapon and release the second inmate.
Following the incident, Lunz was transferred to Florida State Prison in Raiford. Approximately 30 hours later, on September 22, 2009, he was found dead in his cell from an apparent suicide.
Christopher Lunz had been serving a life sentence for the 2003 murder of his father, David Lunz, in Palm Harbor, Florida. He had conspired with an acquaintance, William Westerman, to kill his father in hopes of inheriting his estate. Westerman testified against Lunz in exchange for a reduced sentence of 30 years.
While incarcerated, Lunz claimed responsibility for additional murders of individuals he identified as sex offenders, including a man named Gerald Michael Estes. However, these claims were not corroborated with physical evidence.
The deaths of Nathaniel Taylor and Christopher Lunz highlight the complexities and dangers within the prison system, particularly concerning inmates with histories of violent offenses.
