Cyntoia Brown was a victim of child sex trafficking and was sentenced to life for killing 43-year-old real estate agent Johnny Allen in 2004. The young 16-year-old girl was living with her 24-year-old boyfriend who forced her into prostitution and raped her. Johnny Allen solicited her for sex, that is when Cyntoia Brown was at his home when she shot him she said that she thought he was reaching for his gun under his bed to kill her, according to court documents. Then in August of 2006, a jury convicts Brown of first-degree murder and robbery.
Two months later Cyntoia was sentenced to life. The State officials said that the law dictated that she should serve at least 51 years before becoming eligible for release. However, prosecutors pushed for more time because of aggravated robbery as well as other aspects that took place in the crime. Eleven years later in November 2017 singer-songwriter, Rihanna is the first celebrity to share Cyntoia’s case with the #FREECYNTOIABROWN on Instagram that was then spread all across social media. When Rihanna started spreading the message it created a lot of awareness for Cyntoia’s case.
Later in May 2018 two members voted that the Republican governor, Bill Haslam would grant clemency that would allow her to be released from prison. The two votes that were recommended were denied, which meant that she would continue to serve a life sentence. Later in December 2018 governor Bill Haslam was considering Brown’s clemency petition and expected that he would announce his decision about Cyntoia’s clemency around January. Finally, in January 2019 governor Haslam grants Brown’s clemency to make her eligible for release on August 7, 2019.
Cyntoia Brown’s case is a very significant case and will make history with the topic of justice. According to the US National Sexual Violence survey similarly recorded that 91% of the victims of rape and sexual assault are female, and 9% are male. The association also estimated that one in five women, along with one in 71 men, have been raped. Cyntoia’s case gained a lot of awareness from many A-list celebrities such as Kim Kardashian and Rihanna. This shows an example of using something as powerful as social media for good and spreading awareness. In 2019 one of the biggest ways to spread a message or important news is through social media.
These were the last words of Cyntoia Brown’s statement, ´´With God’s help, I am committed to living the rest of my life helping others, especially young people. My hope is to help other young girls avoid ending up where I have been. Thank you.¨
Eleanor Renfrew, 2024- World News Writer
Photo Credit: People
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