Her case became a national rallying point for criminal justice reform and awareness about the toll of human trafficking. Several dozen supporters of Brown attended a rally Saturday in Nashville, pleading for her clemency from Haslam, who leaves office Jan. 19.
Brown, now 30, was tried as an adult in 2006 and imprisoned in Tennessee following her trial and life sentence for the death of Johnny Mitchell Allen, who paid Brown for sex. She was also convicted of aggravated robbery.
Brown said she feared for her life and shot Allen, 43, while in bed with him because she believed he was reaching for a gun. Prosecutors argued the motive was robbery. Brown’s supporters and lawyer have argued her sentence was too extreme, given her age and circumstances. At the time, Brown had run away from home and was living with her 24-year-old boyfriend, a pimp known as “Kut Throat,” who Brown said raped her and forced her into prostitution, according to court documents.
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