Cyntoia Brown

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Cyntoia Brown

Cyntoia Brown Long (born Cyntoia Denise Brown on January 29, 1988 in Fort Campbell , Kentucky ) is an American who was sentenced to 51 years in prison at the age of 16 for the murder and robbery of Johnny Michael Allen. Brown testified that Allen gave her $ 150 to have sex with him. She feared for her life while she was in his house and shot him in self-defense. The prosecution assumed that she killed Brown Allen in order to rob him. She was found guilty and sentenced to 51 years to life in prison. After her case received public attention in 2017, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam cut it downher sentence of 15 years, so she was released on August 7, 2019. Her story was featured in the documentary Me Facing Life: Cyntoia's Story and her memoir, Free Cyntoia: My Search for Redemption in the American Prison System .

childhood

Cyntoia Brown Long was born on January 29, 1988 in Fort Campbell , Kentucky. Your father is not known. Cyntoia's mother drank alcohol during her pregnancy. Her lawyers argued during the trial that she was born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome . After giving birth, the mother became addicted to cocaine. Unable to look after her child, she put Cyntoia up for adoption.

Although she grew up in a sheltered household afterwards, Brown began to show criminal behavior. She served in the Department of Childrens Services from April 2001 to September 2003 after committing "crimes against a person and property." After spending two years in juvenile detention, she continued to grow up in other youth institutions. She ran away from these facilities several times. In the end, she was homeless in Nashville from August 2004.

After Long became homeless, she met Garion L. McGlothen (also known as Kut-Throat or Cut), who forced her into prostitution. During this time she lived at the InTown Suites Hotel. Brown financed himself and McGlothen through forced prostitution. McGlothen threatened, beat, and raped Brown several times.

Death of Johnny Allen

On the night of August 6, 2004, 16-year-old Brown met 43-year-old Johnny Michael Allen in a Sonic Drive-In parking lot on Murfreesboro Street in Nashville, Tennessee. Allen was a real estate agent. The age of consent in Tennessee is 18 years. According to Brown, Allen asked her if she was hungry and "want some action". She affirmed both and Allen drove with her to his house. They ordered dinner. Brown said she agreed with Allen to sleep with him for $ 150. However, that did not happen. After a while, Brown shot Allen in the head with a 40 caliber handgun. She left home in Allen's Ford F-150 with his wallet, which contained $ 172. She also took two of his weapons with her. She left the car in a Wal-Mart parking lot. Police later arrested Brown and McGlothen near the InTown Suites.

Arrest and trial

Brown has been charged with murder, robbery, illegal gun possession and identity fraud. Although she was not 18 at the time of the crime, adult criminal law was applied to her. That decision was made by juvenile judge Betty Adams Green on November 14, 2004, on the grounds that Brown posed too great a threat to the general public to be reformed in the juvenile justice system.

Brown said she shot Allen in self-defense. This would have made the killing under the American Justifiabile Homocide Law (excusable killing) unpunished.

Brown testified that Allen threatened her several times and stood over her while she was in bed. She also said that she assumed Allen was about to grab a gun while she was in bed. That's why she shot Allen with the gun that her pimp gave her to protect her. The police did not find a gun near Allen's bed. Based on the location of Allen’s body, the police assumed that he might have been shot while he was sleeping. His hands are said to have been positioned under his head. This statement from the police helped the prosecution portray the act as killing and robbery.

According to court documents, Brown threatened a nurse in prison by saying, "I killed a man with a head shot, you bitch, I would like to shoot you three times in the head. I'd love to hear your blood spurt on the floor. ”A recording of a phone call with her adoptive mother was also used as evidence against Brown. There she said: "I executed him." Another inmate testified against Brown. She would have said that she killed Allen “just to know what it felt like to kill someone.” She was sentenced to 51 years to life imprisonment for murder and aggravated theft.

Imprisonment

Brown was serving her sentence in the Tennessee Prison for Women maximum security in Nashville. After her original conviction, she could not have applied for early release until she was 67. In prison, Brown graduated from high school with the General Educational Development Test with 656 points out of a maximum of 800 (comparable to the Abitur). She then earned a top grade community college associate degree and a top grade bachelor's degree from Lipscomb University in Organizational Leadership in May 2019.

Brown's former pimp McGlothen was shot dead on March 30, 2005 at the age of 24.

Brown Me Facing Life: Cyntoia's Story documentary producer Dan Birman tracked her case and other cases of harsh juvenile sentences in a seven-part online series that aired under Sentencing Children from 2016-2017 .

While in prison, Brown married musician and entrepreneur Jamie Long, CEO of JFAM Music, Inc. She took the name Cyntoia Brown Long. Her memoir "Free Cyntoia: My Search for Redemption in the American Prison System" is published by Atria Books, a publisher of Simon & Schuster .

Brown's appeals

On November 21, 2017, Brown's case gained widespread publicity when several celebrities posted their displeasure with the harsh sentence on social media. These included Rihanna , Kim Kardashian , TI , Snoop Dogg and LeBron James . In March 2018, it was announced that the judicial system would be accepting Brown's pardon. The public hearing took place on May 28, 2018. Several witnesses testified for Brown, including Lipscomb University employees, her former prosecutor Preston Shipp, prison officers and victim protection activists. Detective officer Charles Robinson testified that Brown was not a victim of child prostitution, as its advocates wanted it to be. She would have shot Allen out of greed. But even her former prosecutor said in an interview with Fox News that Allen took Brown home to pay her for sex.

On December 6, 2018, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that Brown's early release would not be possible until after serving 51 years. Following this decision, there was repeated outcry on social media. The office of Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam was flooded with letters and phone calls. On January 7, 2019, Haslam decided to reduce Brown's sentence to 15 years with 10 years probation. Brown was released from prison on August 7, 2019. Haslam said that his decision came through careful consideration of a tragic and complex case. He said that sentencing a youth to prison, which gives them an early release after 51 years, is too harsh a sentence.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Daniel Victor: Why Celebrities Have Rallied Behind Cyntoia Brown, a Woman Spending Life in Prison (en-US) . In: The New York Times , November 22, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2019. 
  2. ↑ Peter Wade, Peter Wade: Cyntoia Brown, Sentenced at 16, Must Serve 51 Years Before She Is Eligible for Release ( en-US ) In: Rolling Stone . December 9, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  3. ↑ Rebecca Seales: Rihanna and Kim K back teenaged killer (en-GB) . In: BBC News , November 22, 2017. Retrieved December 10, 2018. 
  4. ↑ a b Indultada una mujer que mató a un hombre que pagó por tener sexo con ella cuando era adolescente ( es ) In: El País . December 9, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  5. ^ Christian Bottorf: Suspect spent time with DCS ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . August 13, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  6. ↑ Michelle E. Shaw: Senator, sorority members aid female offenders ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . July 23, 2002. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  7. ↑ Sheila Burke: DCS loses kids, even violent ones ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . May 8, 2005. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  8. ↑ a b c d Sheila Burke: Teen to be tried as adult in man's death ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . November 16, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  9. ↑ a b Sheila Burke: Judge to decide soon if teen gets trialed as adult ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . November 5, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  10. ↑ Not A Cardboard Cut Out: Cyntoia Brown and the Framing of a Victim ( en ) In: The Appeal . Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  11. ↑ a b 11 Awful Details About Cyntoia Brown, The 16-Year-Old Sex Trafficking Victim Serving A Life Sentence For Killing The Man Who 'Bought' Her ( en ) In: YourTango . November 23, 2017. Accessed December 10, 2018.
  12. ↑ a b Christian Bottorff: Detective: Teen feared man would shoot her ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . August 11, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  13. ↑ Christian Bottorff: Slain you may have been a good Samaritan ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . August 10, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  14. ↑ Christian Bottorff: Wallet: It could be key evidence in case ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . August 13, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  15. ↑ Christian Bottorff: Court: Teen told why she shot, detective says ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . August 11, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  16. ↑ Tennessee Parole Board divided over release in murder case ( en-US ) In: Associated Press . May 23, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  17. ↑ a b c Prosecutors: Cyntoia Brown Wasn't a Victim, Stole Money After Killing Johnny Allen ( en-US ) In: Newsweek.com . Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  18. ↑ Christian Bottorff: Judge may extend teenage killer's sentence to life ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . October 7, 2006. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  19. ↑ Sheila Burke: Teen to be tried as adult in man's death (en-US) . In: The Tennessean , November 16, 2004. Retrieved January 8, 2019. 
  20. ↑ Christian Bottorff: Self-defense claim key in murder trial ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . August 22, 2006. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  21. ↑ AJ Willingham: Why Cyntoia Brown, who is spending life in prison for murder, is all over social media . In: CNN . November 27, 2017. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  22. ↑ a b Christian Bottorff: Brown: Teen guilty in murder, robbery ( en-US ) In: The Tennesseean Archives . August 26, 2006. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
  23. ↑ WMCActionNews5 com Staff: Cyntoia Brown granted clemency, set for release in August . In: wistv.com .
  24. ↑ Dakin Andone: Cyntoia Brown must serve 51 years before she's eligible for release, Tennessee Supreme Court says . In: CNN . December 8, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  25. ↑ Natalie Neysa Alund: Cyntoia Brown can be released after serving 51 years in prison, Tennessee Supreme Court decides ( en ) In: The Tennessean . Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  26. ↑ Ayana Byrd: How to Support Cyntoia Brown ( en ) In: Colorlines . December 10, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  27. ↑ Christine Hauser: Cyntoia Brown Is Granted Clemency After 15 Years in Prison (en-US) . In: The New York Times , January 7, 2019. Retrieved January 8, 2019. 
  28. ↑ Garion L Mcglothen - March 30, 2005 Obituary . In: newspaperarchive.com .
  29. ↑ Cleo J: The Cyntoia Browns under SESTA / FOSTA: Exploration of Sex Trafficking "Protections" as Applied to… . December 11, 2018.
  30. ↑ Anita Wadhwani: Tennessee task force seeks juvenile justice overhaul ( s ) In: The Tennessean . January 9, 2017. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
  31. ^ Sentencing children Part 1: Cytoias's story on PBS-Independent Lens ( en-US ) In: PBS . Retrieved January 10, 2019.
  32. ↑ Cyntoia Brown Marries Pretty Ricky's J. Long . In: Yahoo! Entertainment , August 13, 2019. 
  33. ^ Kristin M. Hall: Freed inmate Cyntoia Brown marries recording artist J. Long . In: AP News , August 12, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2019. 
  34. ↑ Ashleigh Lakieva: Pam From Total Says Her Ex, Cyntoia Brown's New Husband, Is Using Her For Clout - Blavity . In: Blavity , August 15, 2019. 
  35. ↑ Mariah Timms: Cyntoia Brown wasn't present for her own wedding - Tennessee law allowed her to be married by proxy, TDOC confirms ( en ) In: The Tennessean . Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  36. ↑ Lead detective in Cyntoia Brown case pens letter to Governor Haslam amid clemency debate . In: News Channel 5 , January 4, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2019. 
  37. ↑ Detective: Woman convicted as teen shouldn't get clemency . In: AP News , December 21, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2019. 
  38. ↑ TN Supreme Court Rules Cyntoia Brown Must Serve 51 Years Before Parole Eligibility . In: Tennessean , December 11, 2018. 
  39. ↑ Dakin Andone: Cyntoia Brown must serve 51 years before she's eligible for release, court says . In: Cable News Network , Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., December 6, 2018. Retrieved December 11, 2018. 
  40. ↑ Haslam grants clemency to Cyntoia Brown, to be released Aug. 7 . In: WATE News , January 7, 2019. 
  41. ↑ Cyntoia Brown is granted clemency after killing man who bought her for sex ( en ) In: CNN . Retrieved January 7, 2019.
personal data
SURNAME Brown, Cyntoia
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Brown Long, Cyntoia (full name); Brown, Cyntoia Denise (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American author who was sentenced to life imprisonment as a teenager
DATE OF BIRTH January 29, 1988
PLACE OF BIRTH Fort Campbell , Kentucky , United States