Orlando man is sentenced to life in prison

He was convicted of first-degree murder in March ’16 shooting of new father

Charlotte Mortensen was 4 days old when her father, Brian Mortensen, was hit by a stray bullet.

Now she’s just over 1½ — a baby with blue eyes and glittery silver shoes who sat in her stroller Wednesday afternoon, babbling a bit during the sentencing hearing for the man convicted of murdering her father.

“She’s all we have left from Brian,” said Keith Mortensen, one of Brian Mortensen’s younger brothers. “She’s the spitting image of Brian.”

Brian Mortensen’s family and loved ones filled six rows of an Orange County courtroom to hear Circuit Judge Dan Traver sentence Jakell Ward, 23, to life in prison. A jury convicted Ward of first-degree murder in September.

“I know that Charlotte is going to have a lot of great influences as she gets older,” Traver told the Mortensen family.

Mortensen, 32, was a crew leader for Dave’s Fence Inc., installing a fence at Magnolia Court Condominiums on March 18, 2016.

Ward, who lived in the complex, had gotten into a fight with his pregnant girlfriend, according to police. He told her he was going to kill her, records show, and she fled the apartment. She got into her car and saw Ward pointing a .45-caliber Hi-Point pistol at her, records show. He started shooting.

A bullet missed her but hit Brian Mortensen in his heart. His lung collapsed, and his brain swelled.

Ward walked over to Brian Mortensen. Deputies said he offered him $400 and a cup of water but did not call 911. Ward’s girlfriend escaped in her car but soon returned to tell deputies what happened, records show.

On Wednesday, five of his siblings took the witness stand to talk about their oldest brother.

“I know that one day I’ll see him again, probably drinking straight out of a gallon of milk,” said Joseph Mortensen, the youngest brother.

“His love for reading is what drove me to be a better reader and a writer,” said Ryan Mortensen, the second-youngest brother. “… He would probably have read the best stories to Charlotte.”

Brian Mortensen was hospitalized for 28 days before he died, said Priscilla Haynes, a longtime friend of his mother who described herself as an “honorary aunt.”

For those four weeks, the family had hope that he would recover, she said. His brothers played cards at the hospital. Once in a while, his eyes would open, stare blankly into space and close again, she said.

“[His wife] Tori had the ‘Star Wars’ movies on a never-ending loop, so that when he woke up he would see something he loved, something that would help him with his memory,” Haynes said.

After the family’s testimony, Ward said he was sorry.

“I grew up without a father. I know how it feels, and I’m very sorry,” he said. “… I am a good guy. I have good days, and I have bad days. I’m sure we all do.”