Joslynn Brown

Joslynn Brown, a 22-year-old Black woman, was remembered by her family as loyal and dependable, the type of person you could call at any hour for support. Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, and educated in the city's public school system, she worked many jobs in her short life, making connections with people everywhere she went. Her obituary noted that "her family and friends were always her pride and joy."

On the evening of February 15, 2023, just days before her 23rd birthday, Joslynn was fatally shot. Cincinnati police officers responded around 9:49 p.m. to a report of a person shot at an apartment building on Malvern Place in the Mount Auburn neighborhood. They found Joslynn in a hallway, suffering from a gunshot wound. Cincinnati Fire Department personnel arrived and determined she had died at the scene. According to her siblings, Joslynn had told them she was going to a party with friends. Court records and family statements indicated that she was shot after an argument.

The Cincinnati Police Department’s investigation quickly led them to a suspect. Based on witness statements, video, and forensic evidence, authorities issued an open murder warrant for Jarel Jones, then 34, of Findlay, Ohio. Jones fled the state, prompting a search that ended in Michigan. On March 1, 2023, he was arrested in Detroit by the U.S. Marshals Service in collaboration with the Fugitive Apprehension Squad.

More than three years after Joslynn’s death, her case went to trial in Hamilton County. In April 2026, a jury convicted Jarel Jones, then 38, of murder and felonious assault. Following the conviction, Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge Victoria Tallent sentenced Jones to 21 years to life in prison. The case was officially closed as of his sentencing in April 2026.