Judge grants reduced sentence for 20-year-old convicted of sexual battery, burglaries

A 20-year-old Tallahassee man was sentenced last Friday on multiple charges in connection to a six-week burglary spree and sexual assaults which spanned from January 2021 to this February.

Circuit Judge Tiffany Baker-Carper sentenced Jadarius Brown to 12 years in prison, followed by 5 years of sexual offender probation. That could end as early as 18 months if Brown remains employed.

She explained his sexual attacks were "outside of the defendant's criminal character" and stated that "his mental illness and youth should be given greater weight." Brown was originally slated to be sentenced to anywhere from 20 years to life in prison.

A press release from the 2nd Judicial Circuit State Attorney's Office said Brown had been found guilty of burglary of a dwelling with a person assaulted, sexual battery while the victim was physically helpless and grand theft in a case which occurred New Year's Day 2021.

"This crime occurred ... at an off-campus apartment. The defendant, a stranger to the victim, entered the home in the early hours of the morning without permission and sexually battered the sleeping, unconscious victim," the release said.

He also "stole money, a gaming console, and a cell phone. His semen was later identified on the sheets," it added.

Brown was involved in four other cases, all of which are pending, leading to him entering an open plea, meaning a guilty plea without any agreement with prosecutors regarding sentencing, leaving it entirely up to the judge.

The other cases were burglaries in which he stole things such as wallets, laptops and gaming consoles in the Collegetown area, with one of them involving another sexual battery, records show. Brown victimized 14 college-aged men and women throughout his crime spree, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors sought the maximum of life imprisonment, but the defense wanted "a downward departure based on mental health," the release said.

Prosecutors countered that Brown "was diagnosed with a mental health condition, (but) he voluntarily terminated counseling and taking prescribed medication in early 2021."

Assistant State Attorney Brittany Fox prosecuted; Assistant Public Defender John Lynch represented Brown.

Arianna Otero is the City Solutions Reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact her via email at AOtero@tallahassee.com or on Twitter/X: @ari_v_otero.