LIFE SENTENCE FOR MAN WHO MURDERED GIRLFRIEND BY REMOVING TRACHEAL TUBE

Fight Over Food Stamps and Beer Led to Killing

Atlanta- A Fulton County jury has convicted Defendant Paul Brown of Malice Murder, Felony Murder and Aggravated Assault for the beating and asphyxiation death of his girlfriend, Carlene Jones, 47. Brown, 44, will serve life in prison.

Jones’ body was discovered in the back seat of an abandoned car on Thurmond Street in Atlanta on October 8, 2008. During a fight earlier in the night, Brown struck Jones in the face with a closed fist and tore her tracheal tube from her neck. Jones had the tracheal tube to assist her breathing since a 1995 car accident. Brown left the tracheal tube on the front seat and abandoned Jones and the car in the area of Atlanta known as “The Bluff.” As the investigation unfolded, detectives learned the defendant and the victim had argued over food stamps the day before the murder and who was going to pay for beer on the night of the murder. One witness reported seeing the defendant slap and punch the victim and threaten her with a beer bottle. Another witness saw the defendant force the victim into a car and drive off. Following the murder, Defendant Brown told a friend he pulled Ms. Jones tracheal tube out of her neck during the assault. Brown lied to police about assaulting the victim and denied any involvement in her murder.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Wendy Shoob presided over the case.

Senior Assistant District Attorney Clint Rucker led the prosecution with assistance from ADA Andrew Schwartz and DA Investigator G.G. Carawan. Detective A. Gentile of the Atlanta Police Department led the initial investigation.

Media Contact: Yvette Brown, 404-224-0560/404-392-8867, yvette.brown@fultoncountyga.gov