A man in New Orleans was found guilty of killing his pregnant girlfriend in front of her three-year-old child.
Last week, the jury found 31-year-old Jermaine Brisco guilty of second-degree murder, first-degree feticide, obstruction of justice, and cruelty to a child in the 2016 killing. Jason Williams, the district attorney for Orleans Parish, called Brisco’s actions “evil” at a news conference on Tuesday.
Prosecutors say Brisco shot Raven Veal, 22, in the neck on November 9, 2016, while they were sitting in her Ford Focus on Sullen Place in Algiers.
Prosecutors say Veal, who was nine months pregnant, tried to get away from the car but Brisco hit her with the car and rolled her over three times.
At the time, Veal’s toddler was in the back seat. Police say Brisco drove off and left the child, who was not hurt, on the side of the road.
The case was tried by Assistant District Attorney Adele Krieger and prosecutor André Jeanfreau.
“Domestic violence is a plague on our community,” Krieger said. “Raven Veal needs to be here.” It should also be her unborn child. But now that eight years have passed, we can finally say goodbye to this family.
The case in Criminal District Court was Brisco’s third. In 2022, the jury could not decide what to do during his first trial. In 2017, a mistrial was declared to end a second trial.
Gregory Carter, Brisco’s lawyer, has said that there is no physical evidence linking him to the scene of the crime. Brisco’s fingerprints were never found in the car, and the gun that killed Veal was never found.
“Throughout the three trials, Mr. Brisco has continued to maintain his innocence, and he continues to assert it to this day,” said Carter. “Regardless of the verdict, our hearts and prayers go out to the Veal family.”
Williams thanked his prosecutors and a group of open-source intelligence experts on Tuesday for getting him convicted.
