By TopTrendReportTv
August 31, 2024
OAKLAND — Over the last two years, Tyja Braswell, a 23-year-old woman, has experienced a series of extreme highs and lows, each more intense than the previous one.
Since March 2022, when a shootout left her paralyzed and an innocent bystander dead, Braswell's life has been marked by numerous legal troubles. She was charged with murder, released from jail, witnessed her friend’s death in a drive-by shooting, was re-incarcerated, avoided a murder conviction through a plea deal, and was ultimately placed on two years of probation.
However, just six months into her probation, Braswell found herself in legal trouble again. She was arrested and charged with attempted murder for allegedly shooting at the same woman she had confronted just before the 2022 shootout.
Despite these serious charges, Braswell has spent only about three months in custody, much of it under medical supervision due to her paralysis. According to court records, she is currently out of jail, released on her own recognizance, under conditions that authorities claim she has repeatedly violated.
Braswell's ordeal began on March 19, 2022, when she and a woman named Tamia Foster got into an argument at a gas station on International Boulevard in Oakland. The confrontation escalated when Braswell reached for a gun in her fanny pack. Foster's boyfriend, Stavon Moore, already had a firearm and began shooting, hitting Braswell and killing 64-year-old Rodney Davis, who was at the scene to buy drugs from Braswell, according to police and witnesses.
The gunshot left Braswell paralyzed. Police charged both Braswell and Moore with Davis's murder, as well as with attempted murder for trying to kill each other. Foster was also charged for allegedly handing the gun to Moore before the shooting.
Moore went to trial last year, where his lawyer argued that Braswell was to blame for the events. The jury appeared to agree, acquitting Moore of all charges except for possessing the gun that killed Davis and paralyzed Braswell. He was sentenced to six years in prison.
While Moore's case unfolded, Braswell remained free, despite facing murder charges. The county's probation department cited her for numerous violations of her pretrial release conditions, including tampering with a GPS ankle monitor and breaking a court-ordered curfew.
One incident was undeniable: On April 29, 2023, around 2:30 a.m., Braswell was driving with a friend when their car was sprayed with bullets by a man named Bernard Jimmerson, who was reportedly angry about their noisy vehicle. Braswell survived, but her friend, Marie Villa Bedford, was killed. Jimmerson was later arrested and charged with murder.
Five months later, a judge agreed with the probation department’s recommendation to take Braswell into custody, but instead of going to jail, she was placed in a medical facility under armed guard, a move that came at significant cost to the county. In just a month, Braswell struck a plea deal, pleading no contest to being a felon in possession of a firearm and receiving a two-year probation sentence.
At her change of plea hearing in October 2023, Judge Delia Trevino warned Braswell that any probation violations could result in a prison sentence of up to six years. Braswell acknowledged the warning.
Despite this, police say Braswell violated her probation six months later by attempting to kill Foster. The shooting occurred on May 30, when Braswell allegedly fired at Foster’s car as she drove by. Foster was unharmed, but police recovered a gun from Braswell and found Facebook messages between her and Foster, hinting at revenge and referencing the 2022 homicide they were both involved in. Braswell was charged with attempted murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle, and illegal gun possession in June.
On June 24, Judge Elena Condes released Braswell without bail, ordering her to remain on house arrest with a GPS monitor. Her next court hearing is scheduled for October, according to records.
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