Brandoniya Bennett Wiki – Brandoniya Bennett Biography
The Sontravia Elder has put on a facade every day since his 9-year-old daughter was shot to death three years ago in her apartment. She has to appear strong for her other children, she told the jury during the Davonte Benton murder trial. Even if she doesn’t feel that way. But I’m damaged to the core,” Elder said in a low voice, muffled by sobs. She grabbed a crumpled, damp handkerchief.
Benton was sentenced Monday to 45 years in prison for her role in the August 2019 murder of Brandoniya Bennett. The girl was killed as she was leaving the kitchen after going to get a snack while she was watching television. Dallas police said the shooting stemmed from a social media dispute between another man, Tyrese Simmons, and someone who lived in the same complex as Brandoniya and her family.
Brandoniya Bennett Age
Brandoniya Bennett was 09 years old.
Brandoniya Bennett Cause of Death
Police said Simmons fired at the house after mistaking it for his rival’s. Five bullets went through the family’s apartment where more children were. The same Dallas County jury that sentenced 22-year-old Benton also convicted him of murder and fined him $10,000. Benton was seen on surveillance footage around the time of the shooting at Brandoniya’s Old East Dallas apartment complex with Simmons. Brandoniya’s murder sparked citywide protests for peace.
Mayor Eric Johnson attended the boy’s funeral and vowed to make Dallas as safe as “humanly possible.” Police initially said Brandoniya was shot while she was on the couch watching television. Elder said that she is never fully present anymore. A part of her is always on the apartment floor holding Brandoniya as her blood seeps from her head. Elder differentiates herself as the mother she was her before Brandoniya was killed and the mother she seeks. But she doesn’t want her children to notice her.
Police initially said Brandoniya was shot while she was on the couch watching television. Jurors viewed video footage from Dallas Police Officer Ryan Lowman’s body camera showing Brandoniya’s limp body being loaded into an ambulance. Lowman then looked into the back of her squad car where Brandoniya lay as he rushed her for help. After a few seconds, he walked over to a playground and cursed.
He took a deep breath, cleared his throat, and grunted as he walked around the yellow slide. Lowman, a former Marine who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom, said Brandoniya’s killing was “absolutely the worst thing I’ve ever experienced or seen in my life.” “I think about this incident every day, every day, and I will think about it for the rest of my life,” Lowman said.
Defense attorneys Lalon “Clipper” Peale and Jeff Boncek pleaded with the jury for leniency because, they said, Benton was not the shooter. They also pointed to his childhood that he spent bouncing between houses. Benton’s mother testified that his father abused him. Would it be different if Davonte wasn’t involved? Boncek said. “The sad answer is, ‘No, it wouldn’t be any different.'”
But prosecutors Christy Harris and Stephanie Fargo argued that Benton abused the mercy he received from Collin County prosecutors two days before the Aug. 14, 2019 shooting. Benton pleaded guilty on Aug. 12, 2019, to two counts of aggravated robbery in exchange for a type of probation. that would have allowed him to avoid a first-degree felony conviction if he stayed out of trouble, Harris said.
Benton held someone at gunpoint in those cases, Harris said. He asked the jury to sentence Benton to life in prison. When someone shows you who they are, you have to believe them the first time,” Harris said. Brandoniya’s aunt, Ashton Elder, extended a pardon to Benton after the jury decided on his punishment. She addressed Benton in a victim impact statement, saying she believes he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and she hopes he will reflect on his part in the crime.
“We forgive you for the most part,” Ashton Elder said. Benton nodded and looked down at the floor. Brandoniya, who would start school the following week at the Cesar Chavez Learning Center, was popular with his teachers and classmates, said Kelly Brennion, who was assistant principal at the time.
Brandoniya liked to help her teachers and she was known to skip physical education class, a class most kids look forward to, to work on classroom assignments, Brennion told the jury. “Brandoniya was effervescent,” Brennion said. “She was bubbly and bright. She was a very happy girl who had many friends. Brandoniya’s mother hugged Brennion after her testimony. “We didn’t forget her,” Brennion said.
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