Episode Details

Gabriel Brown, a registered sex offender with a history of mental illness, was sentenced to 23 years for brutally murdering Joseph Johnston—stabbing him 22 times, severing and eating his ring finger, then setting the flat on fire. Brown, who had never met Johnston before, claimed he was possessed by Aleister Crowley to “take Ernie’s soul,” fueled by resentment over Johnston’s past relationship with Brown’s step-mother. Though Johnston had let Brown into his home and even took a selfie with him, Brown’s attack was sustained, merciless, and vicious. He disabled smoke alarms, fled, and was later found sleeping in his stepmother’s attic. The court rejected his insanity defense, noting his failure to take medication, and delivered a sentence reflecting the horror of a crime committed against a victim in his own home.

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