Cyntoia Brown made headlines last week thanks to a renewed interest in her murder case which saw celebrities demanding she be pardoned.
When Ms Brown was just 16-years-old, she was working as a child sex slave and killed a man who abused her. She was sentenced to life for the crime back in 2004.
Kim Kardashian took to social media to support Ms Brown, saying: “The system has failed. It’s heart breaking to see a young girl sex trafficked then when she has the courage to fight back is jailed for life!
“We have to do better & do what’s right. I’ve called my attorneys yesterday to see what can be done to fix this. #FreeCyntoiaBrown.”
Now Shawn Holley, who defended OJ Simpson with Robert Kardashian, has confirmed the reality star asked her to look into the effort. Ms Holley has also represented Tupac, Snoop Dogg, Lindsey Lohan and Nicole Ritchie.
“Kim asked me several weeks ago how she could help Alice Johnson in her fight for justice. We then began corresponding with Alice and her team of lawyers,” Ms Holley said.
“Since then, Kim has championed the cause of Cyntoia Brown and asked me to help her get involved in that effort as well.”
Alice Johnson, the other woman Ms Kardashian asked her lawyer to help, is a Tennessee woman who’s served 21 years for her first non-violent drug conviction.
Now a 62-year-old grandmother, Johnson was given a life sentence for passing on messages between members of a cocaine ring in the 90s.
Ms Brown’s case has proven to be certainly complex. In extreme brevity, Ms Brown was the result of an incredibly difficult upbringing which saw her forced into prostitution at 16.
She ended up going home with real estate agent Johnny Allen who she alleges started boasting about his extensive gun collection and repeatedly standing over her. She became increasingly concerned he was going to harm her and when she thought he reached for a gun, she fatally shot him.
Prosecutors claimed she shot him to steal from him and the jury agreed, giving her a life sentence.
Ms Brown was sentenced as an adult, despite reports she suffered foetal alcohol syndrome which might have impaired her judgement, and won’t be eligible for parole until she’s 67.
