On June 10–11, 2017, three members of the same North Royalton family were murdered inside their home. Twenty-one-year-old Taylor Pifer, her mother Suzanne Taylor, and Taylor’s sister Kylie Pifer, 18, were taken captive on June 10.

Brinkman was taken into custody after a nine-hour standoff and charged with aggravated murder, kidnapping, and tampering with evidence. He later pleaded guilty to the killings in November 2018 and received a death sentence. Taylor was a junior at Kent State University studying fashion design and merchandising and was active in softball and work at the Kent State Fashion Management Store.

The case drew widespread attention locally, touching on questions about mental health and public safety.