A man facing charges for fatally stabbing an 11-year-old and injuring his ex-girlfriend had a history of violence, authorities said.
Crosetti Brand was released from a Chicago-area prison the day before allegedly attacking 11-year-old Jayden Perkins and his 33-year-old mother at their home on Wednesday, March 13, CBS News reported.
When police arrived at the 5900 block of North Ravenswood Avenue at about 8 a.m., they discovered Perkins and the woman, who is eight months pregnant and was cut several times, including her neck, according to the report. Officials say that Perkins barged into the home while she was getting ready to take her children to school.
Her 5-year-old saw what happened that morning. Both victims were transported to a local hospital, where Perkins was pronounced dead.
Brand, a convicted felon, was let out of Stateville Correctional Center last Tuesday, March 12, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. He was initially sentenced to 16 years, serving just over eight, for home invasion and aggravated domestic battery for a separate incident with another woman and reportedly released on parole last fall.
His recent release comes after the 37-year-old was taken into custody in February on a parole violation charge where he was accused of harassing the ex-girlfriend, who had recently reached out to authorities for protection, the newspaper reported.
“This defendant has a history of domestic violence and had only been recently released from serving a sentence from a prior conviction,” Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said in statement. “The victim had an order of protection against him from previous encounters, and this history paints a disturbing pattern of behavior which emphasizes the importance of the filing of the charges today.”
After Brand allegedly texted her threateningly and showed up to her doorstep and tried to forcibly enter on Feb. 1, the woman immediately contacted the police, who told her to get a protection order. She requested an emergency order, which a judge denied because Brand was behind bars at the time.
According to the outlet, officials now claim that she had a “lifetime” protection in place stemming from a 2009 incident, which raised questions for advocates who want to know why Brand wasn’t charged with violating that order after the February incident.
Also unresolved is the question of why Brand was paroled again last week despite evidence he’d violated the terms of his parole in February. The Sun-Times reports the Illinois Prisoner Review Board addressed this issue with a statement that read in part, “A hearing determined the alleged violations did not meet the preponderance of evidence standard.”
For last week’s crime, Brand was charged with home invasion, domestic battery, armed robbery, first-degree murder, and attempted first-degree murder, the outlets reported.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson called the incident “horrific,” adding that systemic failures must be addressed. He also acknowledged Perkins, who died trying to protect his mother from Brand.
“Jayden was a bright light in his community. We grieve alongside his family and community as we reckon with this unthinkable loss,” the statement said. “We pray for Jayden’s mother’s recovery. We will never forget Jayden, who was taken from us much too soon. May God rest his soul in eternal peace.”
