Alleged sex trafficking victim released from prison
Woman was jailed for life for killing a man when she was 16
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Cyntoia Brown, championed by celebrities as a symbol of unfair sentencing, was released early Wednesday from the Tennessee Prison for Women, where she had been serving a life sentence for killing a man who had picked her up for sex at 16.
Kim Kardashian West, Rihanna, Snoop Dogg and Lebron James had lobbied for Brown’s release, calling her a sex trafficking victim. She was granted clemency in January by outgoing Gov. Bill Haslam.
Now 31, Brown will remain on parole for 10 years, on the condition that she not violate any state or federal laws, hold a job and participate in regular counseling sessions, Haslam’s commutation says.
Brown released a statement Monday saying she wants to help other women and girls suffering sexual abuse and exploitation.
“I thank Governor and First Lady Haslam for their vote of confidence in me and with the Lord’s help I will make them, as well as the rest of my supporters, proud,” she wrote.
Her attorneys said she’s requesting privacy and transition time before she makes herself available to the public.
Brown was convicted in 2006 of murdering 43-year-old Nashville real estate agent Johnny Allen. Police said she shot Allen in the back of the head at close range with a gun she brought to rob him after he picked her up at a drive-in restaurant in Nashville to have sex with her.
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against sentences of life without parole for juveniles. But the state of Tennessee argued successfully in lower courts that Brown’s sentence was not in violation of federal law because she would be eligible for parole after serving at least 51 years.