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Leroy Brahm violently beat his girlfriend, Annabel Rose Meenan, to death. (Mug shot: Chester County District Attorney; image of Meenan: DellaVecchia, Reilly, Smith & Boyd Funeral Home, Inc.)
Jurors on Friday convicted a Pennsylvania man of murder for brutally and extensively beating his girlfriend — jumping on her and dropping a sofa on her body, according to The Daily Local News.
Leroy Brahm, 33, will receive a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for first-degree murder, but the judge at a later sentencing date will establish the formal punishments for charges of aggravated assault, simple assault, and recklessly endangering another person.
Chester County prosecutors reportedly told jurors that jealousy fueled his violent beating of Annabel Rose Meenan, 21, to death on Dec. 4, 2021. Brahm reportedly arranged for some kind of three-way sexual relationship involving another man, and they even all went on a cruise together, but the defendant became angry and controlling, believing that Meenan, who he dated since she was a high schooler, developed a relationship with the man outside of his presence.
“The Defendant unfathomably, brutally, and systematically beat his girlfriend to death during the course of a night,” District Attorney Christopher L. de Barrena-Sarobe said in a statement Friday. “The jury rightfully recognized that the Defendant was guilty of all charges.”
Authorities previously said that East Vincent Township Police responded to the 800 block of Buttonwood Ave. in Spring City on Dec. 4, 2021. Once there, they found Meenan unresponsive on the floor of the living room with wounds and extensive injuries. She was pronounced dead at Phoenixville Hospital.
“Doctors told investigators that the victim had extensive trauma to her head and face and had lacerations and bruising on the rest of her body, including her arms, legs, torso, and pelvic area,” they wrote. “Investigators discovered bloodstains on the kitchen walls, the oven’s glass door shattered, a hole in the wall, and the victim’s damaged cell phone on the floor. The defendant’s hand, finger, and elbow had bruising and swelling. Later that day, a search warrant was executed at the residence, where numerous home security videos were retrieved.”
Though Brahm reportedly tried to explain the bruising away as the results of rough sex, an in-home security footage recorded the beating that day as well as other abusive incidents from up to a month before the murder.
On Nov. 6, 2021, Brahm was seen on a footage punching a bedroom door and furniture while yelling at Meenan. At first, Meenan was seen walking down the hall and into the bedroom with no visible injuries or limps, but within an hour, she was limping, having trouble walking, and was rubbing her lower leg, which turned out to have a fibular fracture for which she sought medical help on Nov. 15.
“In surveillance videos after that date and leading up to her death, the victim can be seen wearing a medical walking boot,” authorities wrote.
Brahm strangled Meenan to the point of unconsciousness and slapped her on Nov. 13, 2021. Then, 10 days later, he punched her 21 times in the head and body, and he strangled her.
When he killed her on Dec. 4, he punched her in the head and body at least 85 times, and he kicked and stomped her at least 80 times.
After dropping the sofa on her, he sat on it, and went to sleep, Deputy District Attorney Kate Wright reportedly said.
“Annabel Rose was hilarious, fun to be around, and always stood up for what she believed in,” Meenan’s obituary said of her. “When Annabel was in the room, she always made sure everyone felt comfortable and had their voice heard. She loved going to concerts, thrift shopping, Ocean City, NJ, being creative, and spending time with her pets. Her laugh was infectious and she was incredibly kind and loyal. She was proud, determined, always tried new things and never shied away from a challenge. Annabel worked at Rothman Orthopaedic Institute where she was endlessly caring to the patients she encountered and was loved by her coworkers.”
The obituary urged people to contribute to domestic violence help organization A Woman’s Place or “to a charity of your choice in Annabel Rose’s honor.”
The Chester County District Attorney urged local victims of domestic violence to call the Domestic Violence Center of Chester County’s 24/7 hotline at 888-711-6270 or 610-431-1430, or to call 911 in cases of immediate danger.
