FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, December 5, 2023
Brooklyn Man Sentenced to 25 Years to Life in Prison for
Execution Style Murder in Crown Heights
Shot Victim in the Head; Evidence Included Video Surveillance
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez today announced that a Brooklyn man has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for fatally gunning down another man in Crown Heights.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, “The defendant in this case coldly executed another man by shooting him in the head. After a robust investigation and a thorough prosecution, he has now been held accountable for this crime. Acts of gun violence in Brooklyn will always lead to severe consequences.”
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Rennie Patterson, 22, of Crown Heights, Brooklyn. He was sentenced today by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Eugene Guarino to 25 years to life in prison following his conviction in September 2023 of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.
The District Attorney said that, according to the evidence, on December 16, 2017, at approximately 1:40 a.m., the defendant shot and killed John Barnes, 32, in front of 1339 Saint John’s Place. Video surveillance captured the defendant leaving a building next door to his residence, about 10 blocks away, along with a friend, and tracked them walking to the scene.
Seconds after confronting the victim, who the two spotted driving in his car, the defendant pulled out a gun and fired two shots, striking the victim twice in the head. The defendant and his friend immediately fled and were seen running back into their respective homes. The evidence showed that the friend and the victim got into a physical fight and had to be separated a few days before the incident.
The defendant was arrested on July 11, 2018.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Jhounelle Cunningham, of the District Attorney’s Homicide Bureau, under the supervision of Leila Rosini, Homicide Bureau Chief.
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