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A jury has found Crosetti Brand guilty of stabbing his ex-partner and killing her 11-year-old son.<\/p>\n
At 4-foot-2 and 99 pounds, 11-year-old Jayden Perkins fought bravely to protect his mother from her ex-boyfriend as the man attacked her with a knife, prosecutors told jurors Thursday.<\/p>\n
Brand broke into the family\u2019s home on March 13, 2024, with the clear intent to kill the woman who had rejected him, Assistant State\u2019s Attorney Stephanie Gersch said.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018If I can\u2019t have you, no one can.\u2019 Those were the terrifying words that this defendant told to Laterria Smith as he invaded her home\u2026words that he wanted to live up to,\u201d Gersch said.<\/p>\n
Smith was stabbed 15 times but survived. Jayden did not.<\/p>\n
After a weeks-long, often disorderly trial, jurors deliberated for just an hour and 20 minutes Thursday before finding Brand guilty of aggravated domestic battery, home invasion, first-degree murder and attempted murder.<\/p>\n
The jury heard closing arguments Thursday from prosecutors and from Brand himself. They were delivered before a packed courtroom that included Smith and a handful of family members who excused themselves at times when the state recounted the tragic events.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors say Brand went to Smith\u2019s home in the 5900 block of North Ravenswood Avenue, just hours after being paroled and \u201claid in wait.\u201d As Smith opened the door to take her children to school, Brand forced his way in, put her in a choke hold and started stabbing her, according to prosecutors.<\/p>\n
\u201cJayden was just 11 years old, and he was brave and strong, and he tried to stop the defendant,\u201d Gersch said. \u201cAs Jayden tried to stop this defendant, he turned the attack on Jayden. Jayden dropped to the floor and this defendant was right back to attacking Laterria Smith\u201d.<\/p>\n
Laterria Smith, mother of Jayden Perkins, walks through the lobby of the Leighton Criminal Courthouse on Thursday. A jury convicted Crosetti Brand of killing Jayden and wounding Smith in 2024.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/p>\n Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere\/Sun-Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Brand represented himself<\/u><\/a> in the murder trial. His inexperience and his aggressive style in the courtroom at times ground the trial to a halt and prompted conflicts with witnesses and those watching the trial.<\/p>\n \u201cOver the course of this trial, you have gotten to see the actions of a domestic abuser,\u201d Gersch said. \u201cSomeone who would not let an 11-year-old child stop him from killing his ex-girlfriend.\u201d<\/p>\n Brand spent about two hours delivering his closing arguments, during which he criticized the police investigation, attempted to impeach Smith\u2019s testimony and accused her of killing her own son. \u2028<\/p>\n When Assistant State\u2019s Attorney Danny Hanichak was given the chance to respond, he did not mince words.<\/p>\n \u201cThe defendant lives in an alternate reality,\u201d Hanichak told jurors. \u201cWhat you listened to for the last hour or two is not reality.\u201d<\/p>\n Over four weeks, jury members heard from more than a dozen witnesses, many of whom provided graphic and emotional testimony. Prosecutors rested their case Monday, clearing the way for Brand to launch his own defense.<\/p>\n Brand called himself to the stand and spent hours presenting jurors with an alternative series of events. He claimed Smith invited him to her home the night before the attack, though he did not have records of that communication. The next morning, Brand said, Smith attacked him with a knife. \u201cOut of self-defense, I stabbed her ass back,\u201d Brand said Monday. \u201cShe tried to stab me with another knife but ended up missing and colliding with her son.\u201d<\/p>\n Jayden\u2019s murder sent shockwaves through the state, exposing the failures of the current legal system intended to protect people from abusive partners and prompting calls for action in Springfield.<\/p>\n Brand was released from prison in October 2023 after serving time for attacking another former partner. Smith was alerted because she was a victim in previous domestic violence cases against Brand. In the months that followed, Brand began sending Smith threatening messages, and in February 2024, showed up at her home.<\/p>\n Smith alerted the parole board, and Brand was sent back to prison, only to be released again on March 12, 2024<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n As part of his release, Brand was ordered to stay away from Smith, but he told jurors Monday, \u201cIt don\u2019t matter what IDOC said\u2026 I\u2019m gonna do what I\u2019m gonna do.\u201d<\/p>\n While Brand was locked away in February, Smith also filed for an emergency order of protection. Cook County Judge Thomas Nowinski denied the order, finding there was no apparent emergency as Brand was behind bars.<\/p>\n Immediately after his release on March 12, 2024, Brand began calling Smith. Hours later, Jayden was dead and his mother critically wounded. Two members of the Prisoner Review Board, who granted Brand\u2019s release, resigned soon after the fatal attack. In May, lawmakers passed a bill <\/u><\/a>that would ensure victims can file impact statements ahead of parole hearings and seek orders of protection against parole candidates.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n