Final suspect in 2007 murder of Sean Taylor pleads guilty

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More than seven years after Redskins star safety Sean Taylor was shot to death by intruders inside his home, the case finally has some closure.

Timmy Lee Brown, the fifth defendant implicated in the 2007 murder, pleaded guilty Wednesday and accepted a plea bargain that carries an 18-year prison sentence.

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“I’m just glad it’s over. Everyone can move with their lives,” Taylor’s father, Florida City police chief Pete Taylor, told the Miami Herald. “It’s time for healing.”

Brown, 23, and four other men plotted to steal money and other items inside Taylor's home in November 2007. Thinking the house was empty, they broke in and encountered Taylor sleeping in his master bedroom with his girlfriend and their infant daughter. Taylor was shot when he charged at the men with a machete he kept inside his room for protection.

All five suspects have been convicted and will serve lengthy prison terms. Brown's sentence is the shortest of the five.

Triggerman Eric Rivera Jr., 17 at the time of the murder, received a 60-year term when he was convicted of second-degree murder in 2013. 

Jason Mitchell, who orchestrated the plan after earlier attending a birthday party at Taylor's home, is serving a life prison sentence. The two other defendents, Venjah Hunte and Charles Wardlow, are serving 29- and 30-year sentences, respectively.

 

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Brandon Schlager is an assistant managing editor at The Sporting News.