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2w ago

Crosetti Brand Faces Life Sentence After Conviction for Edgewater Murder

Prosecutors are seeking life imprisonment in a case that has already secured convictions on murder, attempted murder counts

CHICAGO, IL – AUGUST 04: Michael Soroka #41 of the Chicago Cubs pitches during the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Monday, August 4, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Nick Loggarakis/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Laterria Smith, second from left, and Chris Perkins, right, walk out of the Leighton Criminal Court Building in Chicago alongside family and friends following a guilty verdict in the murder trial of Crosetti Brand on June 5, 2025. Brand was found guilty of killing Smith’s son Jayden Perkins, 11, who was trying to protect his mother from Brand’s knife attack on Smith. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
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Overview

  • In June, a Chicago jury found Brand guilty of first-degree murder, attempted murder, home invasion and aggravated domestic battery for the March 2024 attack in Edgewater
  • Brand killed 11-year-old Jayden Perkins and stabbed his pregnant mother 15 times a day after his parole from prison
  • During the trial, Brand represented himself and repeatedly insisted his victims wielded the knife—a claim jurors rejected
  • Two members of the Illinois Prisoner Review Board resigned amid criticism over the decision to release Brand on parole
  • The case has prompted proposals from Governor J.B. Pritzker and lawmakers to require victim impact statements at parole hearings and tighten reviews for violent offenders