Insets from left: Antawan Benson and Javen Conner (Montgomery County Prosecutor”s Office) and Isabella Carlos (Pryor Funeral Home). Background: The home in Dayton, Ohio, where Isabella was shot to death (WKEF).
A 24-year-old man from Ohio has been sentenced to more than 60 years in prison for his involvement in a shooting spree targeting three homes, which tragically resulted in the death of a 12-year-old girl. The incident was sparked by a disagreement over a social media post.
On Monday, Antawan Benson received a 67-year prison sentence for the fatal shooting of Isabella Carlos, a 7th-grade student, that occurred last year in Dayton, as reported by the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office. The tragic event unfolded when Isabella was asleep in her home.
Earlier this month, Benson and his brother, Javen Conner, were found guilty in separate trials. The charges included murder, firing a weapon into a residence, felonious assault, and aggravated menacing.
Prosecutors explained that on August 22, 2024, Benson and Conner confronted a woman in a parked car in Trotwood regarding a social media post related to their cousin. The vehicle also contained another woman and several children.
A few hours after the confrontation, around 12:30 a.m. on August 23, 2024, the brothers unleashed gunfire from an AK-47 and an AR-15, targeting three houses. Sadly, Isabella, who was asleep in her bed, was struck during the attack.
When police arrived on the scene, first responders confirmed Isabella’s death at the location where the tragedy occurred.
The brothers were indicted roughly two weeks after the shooting.
Judge Gerald Parker wanted Benson to know Isabella, who went by Bella, likely did not die instantly after being shot.
“It’s just gut-wrenching to try and comprehend the last few moments of Bella’s life,” Parker said, according to a courtroom report from Dayton-based ABC affiliate WKEF. “The testimony was she actually had moved from where she was sleeping. She was found half on the bed, half off the bed, which means she suffered, she struggled whether it was for a couple minutes. I hope you understand that.”
Parker lamented the fact that Benson and Conner posted on Facebook a photo of the empty clips from their weapons after the shooting. The judge called it a “sense of false bravado.”
“Y’all soft, all of y’all are weak. All of y’all soft in those pictures,” he said, per local CBS affiliate WHIO.
Isabella’s obituary called her a “beautiful and intelligent young lady.” Her aunt Donnetta Dewberry spoke at the sentencing hearing about the impact Isabella’s death has had on her family.
“My niece was laying there sleeping, getting ready for school the next day. We will never get to [see] Bella go to prom, her first love, her first date, anything,” said Dewberry.
She added: “You and your brother did somethin’ that will never be able to be taken back. Never be able to be taken back. I feel bad for your family. I feel bad for you, and I ask God to have mercy on you and your life.”
Conner is slated to be sentenced on Jan. 8.
