Marvin Patterson was sent to prison for killing his ex-girlfriend, Kiara Brown, whose body was found inside his vehicle that was located in an alley in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
At around 5:30 a.m. on March 26, 2018, officers with the Milwaukee Police Department were dispatched to an alley near 98th and Carmen Avenue after receiving a 911 call about a gunshot victim.
When they arrived on the scene, they encountered a white Audi with its driver’s door ajar. Upon looking inside, they discovered a deceased female in the passenger seat.
She had been shot in the head, according to Fox 6 Now, and as her body was being removed from the vehicle, a 9mm handgun was found.
The body was later identified as that of Brown, an 18-year-old senior at Vincent High School who was making plans for her upcoming graduation and prom.
Patterson, then 19, turned himself in the following day and confessed to killing Brown, whom he dated on and off for several years.
He told detectives that the killing was an accident and claimed that on the night of March 25, 2018, he went to his ex-girlfriend’s house to show her the new Audi he had purchased.
WISN 12 News reported that Brown’s relatives said she hadn’t spoken to Patterson in a while when he showed up at her house.
And she wasn’t planning to leave the house that night, but when she got into Patterson’s vehicle, he just drove off.
Patterson drove to another location, where they sat and talked.
At some point during their conversation, Patterson asserted that Brown asked about a gun he had purchased earlier, and he told her that he bought it for protection against street violence.
He took it out of the glove box and put it in the cupholder. That’s when he said Brown grabbed the gun and attempted to take a picture with it. As he was trying to take the gun away from her, he said it went off.
Patterson later changed his story.
He told police that he took the gun out of the glove box, pointed it at Brown, and the gun accidentally went off, which caused him to panic.
Patterson said he abandoned the vehicle in an alley and fled the scene on foot.
Relatives told WISN 12 News that they don’t believe Brown’s shooting was an accident.
The victim’s mother asked, “Who has an accident and then runs off?”
“No justice, no amount of time can replace my daughter.”
Patterson was arrested and booked into the Milwaukee County Jail on charges of first-degree reckless homicide and use of a dangerous weapon in connection to Brown’s shooting.
He was released on a $100,000 signature bond under the condition that he promise to appear in court on July 3, 2019, for a status conference.
The victim’s mother said she was “devastated” and “heartbroken” that her daughter’s killer was released.
She told Fox 6 Now that “you have to understand the consequences of when you do something, especially when you take a life. You took a life.”
“She was my oldest, and she… oh God, we were so close, so close. That’s why it hurts so bad. She was my best friend. There will never be another. Never.”
The Court Commissioner said, “It’s one of those moments on why young people, in my estimation, should not be in possession of firearms. Inexperience, unable to properly deal with your firearm. And then these sort of tragedies occur.”
Brown was described by family members as “the most sweetest child and young adult,” and she was “simply Beautiful inside and out.”
“She was a beautiful, spirited young woman who came from good family values. A student who attended Vincent High School and has worked a job for over a year She had many friends, and everyone who knew her loved her.”
In August 2019, Patterson took a plea deal and pleaded guilty to the amended charges of homicide by negligent handling of a dangerous weapon and explosive.
Two months later, on Oct. 10, 2019, Patterson was sentenced to five years in prison and five years of extended supervision, and he received credit for the 434 days he was incarcerated.
Patterson was also ordered to pay $18,093.60 in restitution.