Camden man who shot 8-year-old girl during gang war gets 51 years in prison

A Camden man was sentenced to 51 years in prison in the death of Gabrielle Hill-Carter, an 8-year-old who was struck in the head by a stray bullet while riding her bike outside her home in Camden two years ago.

Superior Court Judge John T. Kelley handed down the sentence Friday, on the anniversary of the shooting, in the 900 block of South Eighth Street, during a gang war.

Tyhan Brown, 20, will have to serve 40 years and 10 months before he will be eligible for parole. A jury found him guilty of aggravated manslaughter, conspiracy to commit murder, and related charges after watching a grainy video of the gun battle and hearing Brown threaten a cooperating witness during a chilling Facebook Live recording while he was in jail awaiting trial.

Brown belonged to the Centerville Bloods and was feuding with Amir Dixon, a member of the Hoover Crips, according to authorities who testified at the trial.  The witness told authorities that Brown admitted to him that he had tried to fire at Dixon, but his gun jammed.

In another Facebook Live recording, Brown called Dixon a "rat" and a "fake Crip" several days before the shooting.

Twenty rounds were fired, and Gabrielle died in a hospital two days later. Dixon, the intended target, was not hurt.

Brown was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force at a relative's home in Clarksville, Tenn.

His lawyer, Adam Brent, argued during the trial that authorities had arrested the wrong person. "My client maintains his innocence, and we intend to appeal," he said.

Brown told the judge that he wanted to offer his condolences to Gabrielle's family and that he hopes police one day find the real shooter. A member of Gabrielle's family also spoke during the court hearing and requested that the judge mete out the maximum sentence.