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November 11, 2009

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Killer gets life without parole

Friday, Sept. 20, 2002 | 9:24 a.m.

After deliberating 2 1/2 hours over two days, a Clark County jury decided Thursday that a Las Vegas man who killed his girlfriend should never get out of prison.

Kassard Omar Brown will formally be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole on Oct. 31 by District Judge Michael Cherry.

Brown, 26, was convicted of first-degree murder last week in the September 2001 shooting death of Rebekah Hanson, 26.

Brown's attorneys had tried to convince jurors that he accidentally shot Hanson, thinking she was a burglar. Prosecutors, however, told jurors that Brown killed Hanson because she was finally leaving their longtime abusive relationship.

Jurors had to decide if Brown should receive life with or without the possibility of parole or a 50 to 100-year sentence.

Prosecutors argued for a no-parole life term, pointing out he has been arrested multiple times in the past for violent crimes.

Brown was also convicted of possessing a short-barreled shotgun, which carries a one to six-year sentence.

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