Houston Man Sentenced to Four 50-Year Terms for 2008 Cold Case Murder and Jail Drug Scheme
Joshua Sinclair Owens, 35, of Houston, was sentenced to 50 years in prison for each of four felony convictions, including a 2008 murder and orchestrating a drug distribution ring within the Harris County Jail. The sentence was announced Wednesday by Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg.
Owens, a repeat offender, pled guilty to the murder of 48-year-old Marsha Lynn Mitchell, who was found strangled behind a construction site in South Houston on June 10, 2008. The case went unsolved until a DNA match from the FBI’s CODIS database led cold-case investigators to Owens, who was charged with murder in 2023. Investigators believe Mitchell was sexually assaulted before her death.
While awaiting trial in jail, Owens reportedly ran a scheme to sell drugs to other inmates, amassing nearly $30,000 in his commissary account. The District Attorney’s Office has since confiscated the money. Owens pled guilty to engaging in organized criminal activity for his role in the drug ring and received a 50-year sentence for that charge as well.
Additionally, Owens pled guilty to aggravated assault of a family member for a 2022 incident involving his girlfriend and to evading arrest for fleeing from police in a stolen Porsche. Each conviction carries a 50-year sentence, and all four sentences will run concurrently.
Assistant District Attorney Sepi Zimmer from the Major Offenders Division prosecuted the murder case, while ADA Kimberly Smith from the Public Corruption Division handled the jail smuggling case. Zimmer stated, “Even if you believe that you got away with murder, we will solve these cases.” Smith added, “This defendant tried to profit from bringing poison into jail… and we were able to hold him accountable for his actions.”
Owens cannot appeal any of his four convictions or the sentences handed down.