Purse snatcher who dragged beloved baker more than 50 feet to her death gets only 7 years; Victim's family calls it 'best possible outcome'

Left: Jen Angel (GoFundMe). Right: Ishmael Jenkins Burch in court (KGO/YouTube).

A purse snatcher was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for dragging a popular California bakery owner and activist to her death as he fled in a getaway car.

Ishmael Jenkins Burch, 20, learned his fate on Friday in the death of Jen Angel , 48. Burch pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter and second-degree robbery.

Angel’s family and friends, who have stated they are honoring Angel’s commitment to restorative and transformative justice, said the sentence “was the best possible outcome under the current legal system, in this political climate,” the San Jose Mercury News reported.

“We know that Jen would not want someone involved in her death, whether complicit or not, to waste away in prison for decades, and we take some comfort in knowing Ishmael has a chance to repair some of the harm he has caused,” the statement said.

The defendant’s defense attorney, Annie Beles, told the newspaper her client would honor Angels’ memory during and after his imprisonment.

“Ishmael, his family, and I are so pleased with the compassion and humanity that Jen Angel’s community and friends showed toward Ishmael,” Beles said, the newspaper reported. “We are so hopeful that the conversation about restorative justice will continue within the Oakland community.”

As Law&Crime reported, Angel was fatally wounded on Feb. 6, 2023, in downtown Oakland when a thief broke into her car while she was in it, snatched her purse and then ran to a getaway vehicle.

Angel jumped out of her car and ran after the thief, but she was knocked down in a struggle, snagged by the the getaway car door and dragged more than 50 feet before falling into the street and hitting her head.

Burch was quickly identified as the driver and was linked to a second robbery nearby that day, police said.

Angel died three days later at a hospital after losing all brain function and being taken off life support.

She once ran an alternative magazine and founded Angel Cakes .

In 2016, she opened a storefront bakery at 745 Fifth Street in Oakland, in the historic Gingerbread House, an Oakland staple from the 1970s to 2007.

Doug Mason posted a moving tribute on Facebook to his closest friend.

“We designated each other as our ‘medical designated agent’ years ago, knowing that no matter what else happened in life, we could always count on each other,” he wrote. “It’s one of those things you wouldn’t expect to need for decades.”

“My heart is shattered,” he added. “It’s difficult for me to describe what a wonderful person she was and what a precious friend she was to me. I’m going to miss you terribly, Jen Angel.”

The post Purse snatcher who dragged beloved baker more than 50 feet to her death gets only 7 years; Victim’s family calls it ‘best possible outcome’ first appeared on Law & Crime .