[ad_1]
Jordan Brown was 11 when he was arrested and initially charged for the murder of his future mother, his future mother. Now 21, Brown, who has spent more than seven years in detention, is focusing on his future as his murder conviction was overturned this summer.
"I'm not angry, I mean, I think that overall, what happened and what happened is BS," said Jordan Brown in an exclusive interview with Juju Chang of ABC News, which will air Friday at 20:20 ET followed by "Nightline" at 12:35 ET "I am innocent. That's the only thing I really want people to know. "
Courtesy of Chris Brown
In 2009, Jordan Brown was accused of murdering Kenzie Houk, 26, while she slept at home in Wampum, Pennsylvania. Houk was engaged to his father, Chris Brown, and eight and a half months pregnant.
Police said Jordan Brown had entered his bedroom, fired at his future mother-in-law with his young hunting pistol, and boarded the bus for his elementary school.
Jordan Brown denies killing Houk. He said that getting ready for school that day in February 2009 was "only a normal morning".
Courtesy of Chris Brown
"My sister Jenessa has woken me up," Jordan Brown said. "[I] went down, took my clothes, went to the bathroom [and] I got dressed. And we sat … on the couch in the living room waiting, and then Kenzie told us to go because the bus arrives and we are going to be late. So we [hurried] and went out the back door and ran into the driveway. [We] went to school. "
Around 8:15 am, Jordan Brown and Jenessa, one of Houk's girls, then aged 7, left home to take the school bus. At 9 o'clock, loggers arrived to work around the house. Shortly after, one of the tree cutters saw the other door of Houk's daughter, Adalynn, aged 4, sobbing and saying that her mother had died. The tree cutters called 911 and shortly thereafter, the police contacted Chris, who was already at work that morning serving a shipments company's shipments.
"They told me that [she and] the baby was gone and I remember being mired in the yard, "Chris Brown told Juju Chang of ABC News. "I lost it."
The next day, at 3:30 am, the father and son were woken up by the police who knocked on the door. The police had an arrest warrant against Jordan Brown, 11 years old.
Courtesy of Chris Brown
Jordan, then a fifth grade student, said that he did not understand what he was accused of.
"They put me in the back of the car and took me to the police barracks. And I was there. And then they took me directly to the county jail, "said Jordan Brown.
After being arrested and charged with the murder of Kenzie Houk and his unborn child, Jordan Brown was incarcerated in the Lawrence County Jail. When his photo ID was taken, Jordan Brown said that he was crying.
"I did not understand what was happening. I did not know where I was, like what was happening or whatever, "he said.
Inside the Browns farm, the police found handguns, rifles and several rounds of ammunition. The case investigators told ABC News in this rural area of Pennsylvania: "It's pretty common, most – especially young men – would grow up learning to shoot with guns."
They also found a 20-gauge shotgun belonging to Jordan. It was a Christmas present from his father because they liked to go hunting together. Investigators said the weapon smelled as if it had been fired recently.
But the investigators thought the strongest indirect evidence came from Jenessa. Police said she had first said that nothing unusual had happened that morning before school. But when she was interrogated again, police said she had a striking memory. While waiting for Jordan to leave the house with her, she told them she heard a boom and identified him to the police as being the sound of a gun.
The police also said they found a 20-gauge shotgun case in perfect condition next to the family alley and found traces of rifle marks on Jordan's clothes.
While awaiting trial, Jordan Brown was hosted for three years at the Edmund L. Thomas Adolescent Center in Erie County, Pennsylvania.
Courtesy of Chris Brown
Chris Brown said that he drove every day, over a distance of 230 km, to see his son in the center. He said he had to drive four hours a day to visit Jordan Brown because "he's my son".
Jordan said that these visits were vital: "I do not know what I would do without them."
"They played a big [role] in, like, keeping my head straight, he says.
The daily trip, however, has wreaked havoc on his finances, said Chris Brown.
"It cost me my job and the money I 'd brought back was used in the gas tank and in the products he needed," said Chris Brown.
And by focusing on the legal difficulties of his son, Chris Brown said that his grief after the loss of his fiancée and that the unborn baby was placed in the background.
"[I really] did not have a chance to cry properly, "said Chris Brown.
Over the years, Jordan Brown said he spent much of his time reading books his father had brought him, reading with a dictionary next to him.
"If I read something and find a word I do not know, [I would] to seek it. In this way, I know what tried to be said, and that's how I read, "he said. "I was a great fantasy reader … it was a completely different world. I would like to lose myself in the book. … Time flew when you read. "
Throughout Jordan Brown's detention in Erie, his father continued to ask him if he had killed Houk.
"I gave him every opportunity. [I’d say,] "Jordan, listen, if anything happens. Accidents happen, buddy. You know, if something has happened, tell me. I will not be mad at you. I am your father. I will never be your father. I will never be here every day, "said Chris Brown.
"[He] has never changed its history. You know, [he] maintained his innocence throughout the first day, "said Chris Brown.
More than two years after his indictment, a judge ruled that his case would be transferred from an adult court to a juvenile court. It will take another eight months for Jordan to be tried for double homicide.
The trial lasts three days. Although the investigators were convinced that Jenessa's statements to the police were convincing and credible, prosecutors took the decision not to present them at trial and did not testify either.
Nonetheless, a juvenile court judge said Jordan Brown, now 14, was a delinquent in the case.
"A judge who concludes a juvenile offender is actually a verdict of guilt. This means that I have a charge in front of a juvenile court in front of me and I conclude that you are responsible for this crime, "said Dan Abrams, Chief Legal Analyst at ABC News.
"I remember watching Jordan and having the feeling that we missed him. And I feel really sorry for him at that time, "said Steve Brown, Jordan's lawyer Steve Colafella, ABC News. "And I just remember watching him thinking, 'How can this kid have more hope?' "
Jordan Brown, who had been in police custody throughout the investigation and trial, was eventually sent to the George Junior Republic Juvenile Detention Center in Grove City, Pennsylvania.
During his incarceration, Jordan was taught to play the guitar and said that he had become a very good basketball player.
Courtesy of Chris Brown
Jordan Brown spent seven summers in detention and was released when he turned 18 in 2016.
Jordan Brown's lawyers appealed two months after his conviction. Eight and a half years after his arrest, Jordan Brown's case had been heard by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court last November.
And in July 2018, the court sided with Jordan Brown, writing that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania had failed to prove Jordan Brown's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. His conviction was quashed. In a rare case, the highest court in Pennsylvania ruled that "there was not enough evidence" to pursue the case.
"I was happy." Finally, I had the impression that a big weight had been removed from me – it's been a nightmare for nine and a half years, said Chris Brown. .
"I'm 100%, you know, a whole, a clean slate. Everything is gone. And that made me happy. Eventually, the truth was finally revealed, "said Jordan Brown.
When asked what message he had sent to the state police who had arrested his son, Chris Brown replied, "Shame on you, this is probably the most polite way to say it."
"You kidnapped him from 11 years old. You have, you know, ruined his name in substance. I mean, Google "Jordan Brown" and you get a picture of the cup that appears, "he said.
Jordan Brown said he had "mixed feelings" about what had happened to him.
"It bothered me all the time. I used to hate it. But I got to the point where it did not bother me anymore. I do not care. But now, I think I go sometimes, I think, "he said.
"I'll be honest with you, I'm suffering from PTSD. [post-traumatic stress disorder] on that, "said Chris Brown." It's a bit of a bittersweet feeling, you know. [I’m] glad that this part is over with Jordan, you know, being wrongly accused. But always, this aspect, which suffers from the loss and has no answer, knowing that it is falsely accused and that the prosecutor and the investigators have followed the same path, the inadequate investigation. … I think that just ruined us [from] never the closure and the person who did that, and for the person who actually did that to pay for it. "
"There is a murderer walking among us who has been neglected," said Chris Brown.
Pennsylvania State Police retired Bobby McGraw, one of the investigators in charge of the case, said he was still confident that Jordan Brown had committed the murders.
"This case was the subject of a very simple investigation among the best police in the country. And none of us wanted to put handcuffs on an 11 – year – old girl. That's where the case took us. I have never regretted that we have arrested the wrong person, in my opinion. And I guess all the soldiers who have investigated this case have the same feeling. We were not wrong, "McGraw told ABC News. "That day, no soldier lost a second of sleep in this case."
Jordan Brown, who is studying at the university and studying computer science, is determined to leave his past behind and prepare for better days.
"I just want to succeed. I just want to get a university degree, you know, get a job in my major and, I do not know, just succeed, "said Jordan Brown.
"My biggest hope for him is probably to see that it will be shaken, that people will watch this, and for what it is, what it really is," said Chris Brown . "Read this Supreme Court order and realize that this child was badly done."
Watch the full article on "20/20" from ABC News on Friday at 10pm. HE and on "Nightline" on Friday at 12:35 ET.
Source link
