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Nearly four decades ago, 14-year-old Cinnamon Brown was manipulated into shooting her stepmother, Linda Brown, while she lay in bed at their family's Orange County home. Cinnamon's father, David, ordered her to commit the crime and persuaded his teenage sister-in-law and secret lover, Patti Bailey, to cooperate. Patti was present when the victim was shot.
Authorities initially believed Cinnamon murdered Linda because of the recent friction between them. The teen thought she would get away with a lenient punishment, but she was sentenced to 27 years to life. She later realized her father's manipulation and told authorities that she was coerced into doing so.
Eventually, Cinnamon taped David during one of their visits, making the latter incriminate himself during the conversation. Following this, both Patti and David were arrested, with the former testifying against the mastermind. David was then sentenced to life without parole in 1990 and died in prison in 2014.
The Real Murders of Orange County on Oxygen is slated to revisit the complex case against Cinnamon Brown in an episode titled Stolen Youth. The all-new episode will air on the channel this Friday, July 21, at 9 pm ET.
The official synopsis of the episode states:
"A young mother is killed in her own bed in what seems to be a sudden crime of rage, but the true killer is shockingly revealed years later to be a twisted master of manipulation."
14-year-old Cinnamon Brown shot her stepmother on her father's orders before faking her suicide
In 1985, Cinnamon Brown, who was David's daughter from his previous marriage, and started living with her father and his new wife, Linda, in Garden Grove, Orange County. Linda and David had an infant daughter Krystal. Along with the Browns lived Linda's 17-year-old sister Patti Bailey, who was also David's secret lover.
According to All Thats Interesting, David Brown manipulated young Cinnamon and Patti, turning them against Linda and making them believe that she was plotting his murder. He ordered the 14-year-old to commit the crime. Patti, who wanted Linda out of the way for her own selfish reasons to marry her husband, backed the idea.
On March 19, 1985, the plan was set in motion after months of planning. Cinnamon Brown was supposed to shoot Linda and then fake her suicide using a cocktail of pills David gave her. She was also coached on how to draft a suicide note for a lenient punishment.
Meanwhile, David headed to a local convenience store for an alibi. At the house, Patti held the couple's baby while Cinnamon stood over Linda, using a pillow as a silencer, and shot her twice. The second shot killed the young mother.
Afterwards, when authorities arrived, they found Linda dead of two gunshot wounds and found Cinnamon in the backyard, lying inside the dog house in her own vomit and urine. Along with her, they found a suicide note, which read:
"Dear God, please forgive me. I didn’t mean to hurt her."
Cinnamon Brown, cooperating with investigators, taped conversations with David in which he incriminated himself
Authorities believed Cinnamon Brown shot her stepmother because of the friction between them. She confessed to the crime and was sentenced to 27 years to life in prison in 1986. However, investigators believed there was more to the story and continued looking into the case.
David Brown, who had previously taken out several insurance policies in Linda's name, collected the payouts and secretly married his former sister-in-law, Patti. However, soon enough, Cinnamon, who was in prison, realized that she was made to take the fall for a crime plotted by her father. Her parole was denied and David's visits became less frequent.
Eventually, the convict, after learning of the isurance policies and David's relationship with Patti, started cooperating with DA office investigators to prove that her father masterminded the plot and coerced her into shooting Linda that night.
In August 1988, Cinnamon started wearing a wire during her father's visits until he incriminated himself during one such conversation. Within weeks, David and Patti were arrested. The latter agreed to testify against the plotter.
Ahead of his trial, David unsuccessfully tried to have Patti and two DA office members killed. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 1990 and died in prison in 2014.
Patti, who was 17 when the crime was committed, was sentenced to a reformatory after coopertaing. On the other hand, Cinnamon Brown served served seven years of her sentence and was paroled in 1992.
Learn more about the caseon Oxygen's The Real Murders of Orange County this Friday at 9 pm ET.
