A 73-year-old Jacksonville woman, Karen Brown, was recently in a violent altercation at her Westside home which landed her in the hospital with severe injuries. According to First Coast News, the invader was identified by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) as 20-year-old Jeremiah Thompson, who approached Brown with the pretense of delivering a wrongly addressed package. Browning to accept the package, Thompson violently attacked her.
The specifics of the attack are redacted in the JSO report, but Brown's family said to News4JAX that the assailant was looking to kill, yet he was fought off by Brown, managing to delay him long enough for her neighbors to get involved. Scratching noise at her door alerted Brown, which started the whole incident on a Friday afternoon.
Neighbors heard the commotion and one of them banged on her garage causing Thompson to flee, leaving behind clothing and Brown's debit card. He was later apprehended by JSO officers and is facing charges including attempted second-degree murder, elder abuse, and home invasion robbery. "She fought back HARD," Brown's niece described the ordeal in a GoFundMe post, summarizing the terrifying encounter.
Brown currently remains hospitalized with a small brain bleed, a broken hip and arm as detailed in the GoFundMe verified by First Coast News on their social media post. Having undergone two surgeries since the attack, "She has the biggest heart and would help anyone in need," the online fundraiser describes her. Brown has spent her retirement volunteering at her church's food pantry, and despite her condition, Brown's niece told News4JAX, she is poised for a painful recovery process.
