By Corey Bennett
On Saturday, October 15th, around 2 a.m. Wesley Brownlee was arrested. Charged with three counts of murder after police linked him to six recent killings and one in a nearby county. Stockton, California’s roughly 320,000 have spent decades enduring pain and suffering from municipal bankruptcy to excessive crime waves. Now they must deal with the pain stemming from numerous recent killings.
Mr. Brownlee is 43-year-olds. The district attorney said he was a truck driver that recently moved to Stockton over the summer.
Not only was Mr. Brownlee charged with three counts of murder. He was also charged with weapon charges. Prosecutors are saying that he used an untraceable firearm, better known as a “ghost gun.” Police zeroed in on Mr. Brownlee, surveilled him, and soon after caught him while he was driving. They said that he was armed and that he was “out hunting”, prowling for another victim. He was caught while wearing dark clothing and a mask around his neck.
Brownlee’s victims ranged from 21 to 54. Police are saying that at the time they were attacked they were homeless. There were six men killed and one female who was lucky enough to escape.
While in the San Joaquin County Superior court, Mr. Brownlee seemed to be stone-faced as the judge read out his charges, and as the family read out their statements some appeared to be on the verge of tears. Judge Soldati ordered that Mr. Brownlee be held without bail, before sentencing him to life in prison. But not without letting Mr. Brownlee know that this was the minimum sentence on convictions for his charges.
We mourn with the victims’ families. Could this be the end of Stockton’s crime wave, letting the community know that something needs to be done about this crime wave? The only thing we can do now is send our prayers to the family and let Stockton heal from this devastation.
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