Have you been living under a rock? I just did & dont understand the grounds they dismissed her ex as innocent. Charles . They discovered Mrs. Borden's body a short time later. Like he couldnt have parked nearby overnight watching the house then pull up when he went to kill her WITHOUT dusting off his car prior? Enough evidence without a reasonable doubt? The mother of Kenzie Houk, who was 26 when she was murdered in 2009, and other relatives confirmed Monday's decision by a Lawrence County judge to release Jordan Brown following a juvenile. I miss her every day, he said. Jordans defense lawyers say her timeline means Jordan wasnt there when Houk was killed, but Martin, who worked the case, says after so many years he doesnt find Adalynns account credible. Jordan Brown (right), seen here with his father Chris Brown (left), was released when he turned 18 in 2015. After Pennsylvania's Superior Court ruled that Judge Motto violated Brown's Fifth Amendment rights, Judge Motto recused himself from the case, and Judge John W. Hodge granted the decertification petition and ruled that Brown should be tried as a juvenile.[6]. Jordan Brown mug shot AP Photo/Lawrence County Prison via Beaver County Times. The Jordan Brown case. We did not get this wrong, McGraw told 20/20. There is not a trooper on scene that day that has lost one second of sleep over this case.. I hope the state police reopen their investigation and actually try to take their blinders off and find out whoever did this so that that family can have some closure and some justice.. My sister Jenessa woke me up, said Jordan Brown. Officials say it has been determined that a physical altercation occurred between the victim and Dequan Blount, who . They told me that her and the baby were gone, and I remember collapsing in the yard, Brown said. I was so young. Everything is gone. Emma Tustin, 32, was unanimously convicted at Coventry Crown Court on Thursday of murdering Arthur Labinjo-Hughes. They had a warrant for Jordan's arrest. The state Attorney General said Houk had been killed by a youth-model Harrington & Richardson 20-gauge shotgun that Brown had received as a Christmas gift from his father, with Pennsylvania State Police reporting finding a spent shotgun shell near the path the 11-year-old walked to get to his school bus the morning . No question.. They attempted CPR, but it was too late. The summary of that interview provided by troopers is changed to claim the woman didnt want her interview used against the boy because she was scared of him. She remembered picking up her mothers phone and answering it. Harvey told police he didnt harm Houk, telling them he was sleeping at home when she was killed. "[15][16] The last words of the opinion then ordered that "Appellant is discharged." Alan's stepmother, Rosalind L. Brown, and her brother, Montel Pettiford, were eventually convicted of his murder. According to a search warrant filed Friday, police found the gun outside the boys bedroom, along with a blue blanket with a hole the size of a quarter and burn marks. Jordan Brown (Shooting of Kenzie Houk) | Did an 11-Year-Old Commit Murder? And if you go by Adalynns account, this means it all, including the murders, happened long after Jordan and Jenessa had left the house and were on their way to school. Jordan Brown is alleged to have shot 26-year-old Kenzie Marie Houk, who was eight months pregnant, before catching the school bus on Friday morning, according to the Lawrence County district. It's so insane to me how these cops and detectives handled the case. I was standing right at the edge of the doorway, and I remember the coroner saying, as he started to touch the body, We have a problem, Martin said. This was way beyond shoddy police work! I can remember just looking at Jordan and feeling like we had failed him. They attempted CPR, but it was too late. I think the ex boyfriend did it. [He] never changed his story. Boy who killed dad's pregnant fiancee to get juvenile review. April 13, 2012. His father backed up his alibi, confirming Harveys story that he was home with them. Another issue Jordans attorneys raised was that there was no blood or tissue found on the gun or Jordan Browns clothing that day. Jordan battled the fear that she would turn out to be like her mother. Unfortunately, we cant give him back the years that were lost, but were glad that the courts ruling today will mean that further barriers to his moving forward with a successful life will be broken down.". Channel 11s Amy Marcinkiewicz reached out to Houks family. Double jeopardy has attached under the Fifth Amendment, and Brown, now 21, cannot be retried. Finally, it felt like a big weight had been lifted off of me. In an interview with New Castle News, Elisco addressed potential problems with how the case was investigated. Speakman said Brown's family lives out of state, so when he heard Jordan was murdered, he reached out to the family on Facebook. He spent over three years in a juvenile facility in Pennsylvania. She was interviewed four times in 14 hours after her mothers death, according to the lawsuit. Houks younger daughter Adalynn, whom tree trimmers found sobbing when she discovered her mothers body, has never spoken publicly about this. Houks father, Jack Houk, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he and his wife Debbie, who have raised Houks two daughters since her death, are distraught. [7][8][9][10] Judge Hodge held that Brown's juvenile hearing would not be open to the public or to the news media. I'd, like, lose myself in the book. He was almost 21 when Pennsylvania's highest court said. Houks mother Debbie Houk told 20/20, Jordan's a murderer. I was just like, Hey mom, wake up. and when I turned her own, I realizedId come to the conclusion of what had happened. Brown was found guilty of first-degree murder and homicide of an unborn child in connection with the death of his fathers fiance Kenzie Houk. The court said that prosecutors did not have enough evidence to support the conviction, according to The Associated Press. Davis's death helped inspire the Black Lives Matter Movement and contributed to the national debate Read MoreJordan Russell Davis (1995-2012) Love is the desire to see unneces (CBS/AP) PITTSBURGH - A judge on Friday found 14-year-old Jordan Brown guilty of killing his father's pregnant fiance . He also claimed he didnt know where Houk lived. That's where the case took us. Houk, 26 and about eight months pregnant with Jordan's little brother, was found dead in her bed by her 4-year-old daughter on Feb. 20, 2009. Medical examiners determined early that both people probably had been killed with an ax or a hatchet. This is a really interesting case. Interviewing those involved, with the goal of finding out who killed Jordan and why? I didnt care. But omg! After the arrest, prosecutor John Bongivengo told reporters he was confident in his case against Jordan Brown. They also pointed out the lack of an eyewitness or credible forensic evidence as reasons for the decision. They noted there was no eyewitness, no DNA or fingerprint evidence and no blood or biological material on Browns clothing. He has someone that says that he's at home and from the trooper that interviewed him, who said the truck didn't look like it had been driven and we took photos of the truck, Martin said. Now 21, Brown, who spent more than seven . He kept shifting and obviously upset. WAMPUM, Pa. -- Jordan Brown was 11 years old when he was arrested and initially charged as an adult for the murder of his pregnant, soon-to-be stepmother. Jordan Brown, 11, is pictured following his arrest in the Feb. 20, 2009, shotgun slaying of his father's pregnant fiancee, Kenzie Marie Houk. ". Were ecstatic, we believe professionally and personally in Jordans innocence, Elisco told the station. Brown, now nearly 23, said this week he hopes the lawsuit will be the definitive finding of his innocence as well as providing some compensation for his father, Chris Brown, who paid child support, taxes, lawyers fees and expenses to travel more than 100 miles every day to see him while he was incarcerated. "Sure enough, his dad was the first person to reach out to me . But it would take another three and a half years before his appeal was heard by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. His disposition order was dated May 18, 2012. I agree with a lot of the previous comments- the bald cop was way too defensive, the girls story changed and that was ok but his story changed and it meant he was guilty, the ex had all the motive and he said he didnt do it so they said ok. What really gets me though is that grown men who have prior criminal experience commit murders, try and clean up the scene, and still leave physical evidence. Two of the statements did not show that Brown was guilty, and the others were built on lies that were fed to her by the investigators. She never testified under oath. The Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office then took over prosecution of the case. Alan's death devastated his family. But authorities transferred him to a juvenile center in March 2009 after his attorneys argued that the adult jail with its three cell blocks couldn't accommodate an 11-year-old boy. A state police spokesman, Ryan Tarkowski, declined to comment on pending litigation. Her partner and Arthur's father, 29-year-old Thomas Hughes, was found guilty of. The Lawrence County District Attorney's Office initially filed the charges in adult court because that is required in Pennsylvania homicide cases, regardless of a defendant's age. The 25-year-old criminal was born in Pennsylvania, United States. Im 100 percent, you know, a whole, clean slate. After Brown had spent more than three years in a juvenile detention facility in Erie, Pennsylvania, while Pennsylvania courts deliberated his status, Brown was tried as a juvenile and found guilty of being delinquent by a judge on April 13, 2012. - The mother of 16-year-old George Almaraz Jr., who was killed, allegedly after suffering abuse from his stepmother, spoke about her son's brutal death. The investigators were excited to have a sensational murder case, and once their minds were made up they did not collect additional physical evidence because they were sure they had their killer. Before watching Stephanie's video, I had very little knowledge about the case besides seeing his mugshot around the internet and people labeling him as one of the youngest killer. And I had no idea where we were going. Jordan Dewey Brown, 35, was charged Monday in 4th District Court with four counts of rape of a child, a first-degree felony; two counts of drug possession, a third-degree felony; and possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor. Just 11 years old when he was charged with fatally shooting his pregnant, would-be stepmother, Jordan Brown is finally a free man more than nine years later. Trooper McGraw believed Jordan threw the shell to the ground as he was walking to the bus the morning of the murders. I just read about this and came to this subreddit looking to see if anyone posted anything about it. What happened to me is so horrible, even though when I was young I would say I didnt understand what was happening I look back and see all the blatant injustices, and that angers me, he said. Pennsylvania State Police Corporal Jeffrey Martin, now retired, says he was one of the first responders on the scene. Both children were interviewed and, according to police, neither said anything out of the ordinary had happened that morning. In a later interview, after investigators told her grandparents they believed Brown killed Houk, the girl said she saw him with guns that morning and heard a bang. However, Jordan said he remembered seeing a black truck near the garage. The blanket being outside Jordans bedroom is not surprising. Not only did the individual defendants in this case fail all of us, the institution of policing failed us as well, Alec Wright, an attorney with the OBrien Law firm in Pittsburgh who represents Brown, wrote in an emailed statement. Judge Hodge adjudicated the now-15-year-old Jordan Brown to be delinquent (the juvenile court equivalent of a guilty verdict). Jordan Brown, who is attending college and studying computer science, is determined to leave his past behind. We had a youth model shotgun in the house that had smelled like it recently had been fired, Martin said. And just feeling so sorry for him at that moment, Colafella said. Feb. But that's why I told them.. She wanted financial support payments for Adalynn but he had refused, saying he first wanted proof that the child was his. And again a third appeal was taken to the Pennsylvania Superior Court. Early in the investigation, a number of people including Chris Brown told police they should look into another person -- Houks ex-boyfriend of six years, Adam Harvey. Sometime shortly after, one of the tree trimmers spotted little Adalynn in the doorway, sobbing and saying her mother was dead. They couldn't prove that the shotgun found in the house was the one used in the murder, other than a sniff-test (smelling of the gun barrel). See additional information. She had cheated him of his money and cheated on him by sleeping with another man. The lawsuit claims the only evidence against Brown was a coerced and fabricated statement of his soon-to-be stepsister, who was 7-years-old at the time. This was their first child together a baby boy they had already named Christopher. Please consult your doctor before taking any action. Learn about careers at Cox Media Group. He was almost 21 when Pennsylvania's highest. On July 18, 2018, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned his conviction in a 50 decision. Police arrested Jordan Brown based on the information provided by the girl. People will believe what they want to believe, but Jordan was innocent. Jordan Brown juvenile court disposition is treatment. But then I got to the point where it didnt bother me at all. It's three feet long., Inside the Browns' farmhouse, police found a collection of handguns, rifles and several rounds of ammunition. I saw a gentleman in front of me that was crying, said Martin. It just seems like at some point during the investigation he would've broken if he'd been guilty. And none of us wanted to put handcuffs on an 11-year-old. Marie Magoon, Spencer Jordan tortured 6-year-old Meika Jordan before death, alleges Crown Spencer Jordan, Meika's father, and Marie Magoon, her stepmother, were originally charged with. I mean, Mary Bell was only 11 when she killed two young kids. I was happy. Jordan denied to "20/20" doing anything with his guns that morning, saying I never touched them.. [I'm] happy that this part of it is over with Jordan, you know, being wrongfully accused. 2023 Cox Media Group. It would be another eight months before Jordan would stand trial for double homicide. A young Jordan Brown is seen here in this undated family photo. 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