A Chicago mother whose 11-year-old son was stabbed to death last year by her domestic abuser is now taking on the government ...

Laterria Smith leaves the Leighton Criminal Court Building in Chicago on May 12, 2025, after testifying in the murder trial of Crosetti Brand, who is accused of killing Smith’s son Jayden Perkins.

Crosetti Brand, the man charged with stabbing an 11-year-old boy to death and seriously hurting the boy's pregnant mother took the stand Monday in his own defense.

Crosetti Brand got out of prison in October 2023 and took a job at a fast food restaurant, even though he had a grander plan to make money: self-made adult videos and hiring himself out as a male ...

Crosetti Brand, 39, is facing several charges, including first-degree murder, for the death of the young boy. Perkins' mother, Laterria Smith, who was pregnant at the time, was also seriously hurt ...

Brand was released from prison in October 2023, and according to prosecutors, resumed his harassment of Smith. In the weeks preceding the attack, he sent her a text message threatening her and her ...

Good afternoon, Chicago. Representing himself while he stands trial on murder charges, Crosetti Brand was in the middle of heatedly arguing that he was receiving an unfair trial when the judge ...

Crosetti Brand Also on Wednesday, Cook County prosecutors presented graphic police body-cam video that captured the stabbing aftermath in the victim’s blood-stained living room.

Jayden Perkins, 11, was stabbed to death while trying to protect his mother from Crosetti Brand in March 2024. Rodriguez, who lived next door, was the first person at the crime scene.

The suspect in the case, Crosetti Brand, 37, a former boyfriend of Perkins' mother, had been released from prison on parole hours before the attack.

Crosetti Brand was released on parole from a 15-year prison sentence in October 2023 and started to threaten the boy’s mother, whom he had previously had a relationship with, according to the ...