Deadly Axe Attack Nets Williamsburg Man Prison Sentence: DA

BROOKLYN, NY — The man accused of brutally attacking his ex-girlfriend multiple times, leaving her in critical condition, and fatally striking her pregnant friend with an axe was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison on Wednesday, officials said.

Jerry Brown, 39, of East Williamsburg, was convicted of second-degree murder, second-degree attempted murder and first-degree assault earlier this summer, following a bench trial, according to officials.

"This was a shocking and senseless act of violence that took the life of a pregnant woman and left a second woman with physical and emotional traumas she suffers to this day," Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said.

The incident occurred at 1:35 a.m. on April 20, 2019, in his girlfriend’s apartment at the Bushwick Houses on Flushing Avenue near Humboldt Street in East Williamsburg. Brown attacked his 21-year-old girlfriend and her friend, 20-year-old Savannah Rivera, with an axe.

His girlfriend's 4-year-old daughter was also present during the attack but was unharmed, police said.

Evidence showed that Brown fatally struck Rivera, hitting her repeatedly, and inflicted severe injuries on his girlfriend, including a laceration to the back of her head and gashes to her torso, arms and throat, officials said.

His girlfriend, who was not identified, was able to make it out of the apartment and had an Uber driver that was stopped at a traffic light call 911, prosecutors said.

She was rushed to Elmhurst Hospital in critical condition, where she underwent multiple surgeries to treat a fractured skull, broken ribs, collapsed lungs and several stab wounds. She continues to experience seizures and remains at heightened risk of life-threatening infections, prosecutors said.

Brown surrendered to police later that day and confessed to the attack. He told officers that he had thrown the axe and his girlfriend's cellphone in the building's incinerator before leaving the apartment, according to the District Attorney's office.

"Nothing will bring Savannah Rivera back, but I hope today’s sentence brings a measure of solace to her family and friends. The defendant has now been brought to justice," Gonzalez said.