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On Friday, November 3, 18-year-old Iowa teen Pieper Lewis escaped the probation center where she was being held for killing an alleged abuser. Pieper was last seen leaving Fresh Start Women's Center a little after 6 am, as reported by Iowa's Fifth Judicial District Department of Corrections.
Jerry Evans, the executive director of the District, said in a statement to CNN:
“(Pieper Lewis) walked away from the Fresh Start Women’s Center on Friday at 6:19 a.m. after cutting off her electronic monitoring tracking device. At this time, her whereabouts are unknown."
The New York Post reported that in September, Pieper was sentenced to five years of supervised probation for the murder of 37-year-old Zachary Brooks, who she had accused of s*xually assaulting and trafficking her.
"Without thinking, I immediately grabbed the knife from his nightstand": About the Pieper Lewis case
Pieper Lewis pleaded guilty to the murder of Zachary Brooks in June 2021.
In her plea, she claimed that she had survived as a homeless 15-year-old for extended periods of time, often carrying out illegal relations with adult men in exchange for money, alcohol and drugs.
Pieper said that she met Brooks in May 2020, claiming that he took advantage of her multiple times while she was unconscious. She said that on May 31, she was stunned when Brooks' associate threatened her with a knife.
Later that day, after being abused by Brooks once again, she stated that she waited until he was asleep before she killed him in order to prevent future exploitation. Lewis wrote:
"(I) was overcome with rage. Without thinking, I immediately grabbed the knife from his nightstand and began stabbing him. I further acknowledge that the multiple stab wounds that I inflicted upon Mr. Brooks thereafter ultimately resulted in his death.”
While Pieper Lewis confessed to the murder, advocates of assault victims were outraged by the fact that she was still being prosecuted. Kellymarie Meek, a spokesperson for an NGO that works with assault survivors, spoke out against the sentencing.
Meek said:
“I don’t think that justice was served. Because I know that many of the ways that trauma survivors deal with their trauma is not understood very well by folks that haven’t experienced trauma, which can sometimes lead to behaviors that get folks in trouble."
CNN reported that in addition to her 5-year sentence, Pieper was also ordered to pay $150000 to Brooks' family, as well $4000 in civil penalties, as restitution is mandatory under Iowa law. Reportedly, Polk County District Judge David Porter also ordered her to take part in 200 hours of community service.
In the initial Zachary Brooks murder trial, Pieper Lewis faced up to 20 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter and wilful injury, but those sentences were deferred due to her probation. However, the New York Post reported that since she has now violated her probation by escaping, she may be held under the terms of her original sentence.
