A French Valley man who dodged a murder conviction in the fentanyl-related death of his 16-year-old girlfriend was sentenced to three years in prison Wednesday, July 31, for involuntary manslaughter, making him eligible for immediate release from custody.
Raymond Gene Tyrrell II, 21, has already served 3 1/2 years behind bars awaiting trial for supplying the deadly opioid to Jenna Lynn Gordon, on Feb. 24, 2021. A jury on Tuesday convicted Tyrrell of the lesser charge of manslaughter, rejecting a murder conviction that would have carried a prison sentence of 15 years to life.
Mother ‘devastated’
Gordon’s mother, Tammy Lyon-Gordon, told the court Wednesday she was extremely disappointed that Tyrrell was not convicted of murder.
“To say I am devastated about the jury’s verdict is an understatement,” Lyon-Gordon said during her victim impact statement before Judge Judge Stephen J. Gallon in the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta. “The jury’s decision yesterday brought me to my knees, because I feel like I have lost my daughter all over again.”
She said her daughter, who was tall at 5-foot-8, had piercing blue eyes and loved horses. She aspired to attend college in Montana and become an equine veterinarian, she said.
And Gordon wasn’t Lyon-Gordon’s only child to die of a fentanyl overdose. Her 18-year-old son, Tyler, died 10 months before Jenna after taking a counterfeit Percocet pill. Edward Hernandez, 24, of Menifee faces federal charges for supplying him with the drug, and a trial is scheduled for March 31, 2025, in U.S. District Court in Riverside.
“On Feb. 24, 2021, my whole world changed for a second time — I lost my child at the hands of another person,” Lyon-Gordon said. “While the paramedics were in my house trying to save my daughter, I was on my knees begging God to let me switch places with Jenna, to take me instead.
“I’ve lost 95 pounds since Jenna’s life was taken. I had already lost my 18-year-old son. I can’t eat, I can’t sleep, I can’t breathe because of my constant anxiety. I have been battling depression for over three years. I’m in constant fight or flight mode,” Lyon-Gordon said. “I don’t have dreams when I sleep anymore. I feel like a shell of the person I used to be. I had a purpose in life, and that was being her mother. (Tyrrell) stole my purpose in life.”
She said she believes Tyrrell is a “true danger to our community and to society.”
“He knew that my son died from a fake Percocet, he knew others who died from this as well. He himself almost died from fake pills, yet he still gave it to her knowing the dangers,” Lyon-Gordon said.
Tyrrell told sheriff’s investigators in a video-recorded interview he had overdosed once before after taking a counterfeit Percocet pill, and that he had been lucky he survived. He also told investigators he knew other people who had overdosed and died.
Prosecutors said he and Jenna shared one of six counterfeit Percocet pills he had obtained, crushing it and snorting it in her bedroom.
Defendant ‘deeply sorry’
In a statement by Tyrrell read by his attorney, Charles Kenyon, the defendant said he was “deeply sorry” for his actions and any role he played in Gordon’s death.
“I did care about Jenna, and never would have done anything to hurt her. I am sorry for any pain I have caused her family and friends,” Kenyon said in the statement.
Tyrrell said he would try to seek ongoing help for his addiction.
“I will attend drug treatment because I know I will fight this the rest of my life. If I can save someone else from drugs, I pledge to do that, too,” Kenyon said on behalf of Tyrrell. “I am sorry for my actions, and will live with this shameful burden of regret for the rest of my life.”
Prosecutor: Another chance at life
Prosecutor Gerald Pfohl said told the court that Tyrrell is fortunate he is getting another shot at life.
“Today and forever, there is a necessity to remember Jenna Gordon and a life that was cut short,” he said.
As for Tyrrell, Pfohl said, he twice received another chance at life after surviving two overdoses, and is about to receive his third after winning his release from custody.
Related links
French Valley mother loses both children to fentanyl overdoses in less than a year
Riverside County’s war on fentanyl dealers gaining attention across state
Attacking fentanyl on all fronts, Inland Empire launches public awareness, health campaigns
Murder charges in fentanyl deaths? Riverside County carves new path in Southern California
Why bills to crack down on fentanyl dealers have been doomed in the state Legislature
“Where he goes from here is going to be that third chance,” Pfohl said. “The idea that someone was brought back from the brink of death and has a chance in this world, what is he going to do? It is the question he needs to walk away from this courtroom with.”
Tyrrell faces another felony offense for allegedly fashioning a shank May 2 while in custody at the Cois M. Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta, according to a criminal complaint filed June 7. Kenyon said Wednesday that Tyrrell will receive credit for time served for that offense as well and that it would not affect his release from jail. Tyrrell, however, will receive two years of formal probation, Kenyon said.
Tyrrell was charged with a single count of murder on March 1, 2021, after the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office pledged to crack down on those who supply fatal doses of fentanyl. Since 2021, the office has filed 36 cases against those who allegedly supplied fentanyl.
