Photo by Instagram
University of Hartford freshman, Brianna Brochu, 18, was arrested after her roommate said she was systematically poisoned over the first few weeks of the school year in an effort to get her to move out.
The victim, Chanel “Jazzy” Rowe, told police she felt “ostracized” by Brochu, according to the Hartford Courant. She said Brochu ignored her and then asked her to change rooms. On top of that, Rowe incurred physical trauma due to the actions of her former roommate.
In the video Rowe posted to Facebook describing the incident she said, “While I’ve been here, I’ve been getting sick.” “It started with throat pain. I thought maybe because it’s colder up here, I’m just catching a cold.” While it never developed into a full-on cold, the throat pain got worse and worse. Rowe said that after about a month, the pain “got to the point where I had extreme throat pain that I couldn’t sleep, to the point where I couldn’t speak.”
She eventually went to the campus doctor who gave her antibiotics that helped, but didn’t fix the problem entirely. The doctors new a bad bacteria was causing the pain but couldn’t pin point what or why.
Photo By Instagram
After Rowe finally moved out Brochu took to Instagram to brag about her victory. In the post she included all the details of her treachery including spitting in Rowe’s coconut oil, rubbing bloody tampons on Rowe’s backpack, and more.
“I can finally say goodbye to Jamaican Barbie”
This is a crime. she could have killed her. #JUSTICEFORJAZZY pic.twitter.com/c3cKsgKhqp
— tsunami taj (@EverythingTaj) October 31, 2017
To make matters worse, after moving out residence hall authorities told Rowe “the situation is over.” As reported by blavity.com, the same officials allegedly told her that she wasn’t allowed to talk about what happened.
She also alleges that school public safety officials were less than helpful when she went to them for aid. Rowe says the public safety office told her she “might not hear anything at all” about the case.
Upset, she took to social media for justice, and twitter users were quick to come to her rescue with the hastag #JusticeForJazzy.
Briana Brochu attempted to murder her @UofHartford roommate Jazzy Rowe by poisoning & bragged – the charges seem inadequate #JusticeForJazzy https://t.co/mQYcm3kDch
— myla reson (@MylaReson) November 1, 2017
#JusticeForJazzy because this is happening on my own college campus and I won’t allow it to get swept under the rug. https://t.co/04Re974QpE
— Summyrrh (@summyrrh) October 31, 2017
the entire world is watching now.
Your move, @UofHartford.. and it better be the RIGHT one.#JusticeForJazzy pic.twitter.com/kJW4AeR3uJ
— tsunami taj (@EverythingTaj) November 1, 2017
#JusticeForJazzy because she had more self control than I ever could… I would’ve honestly handled this differently… pic.twitter.com/7jo0NvYSCf
— Emanate Peace. (@WasteMyTimePls) November 1, 2017
Now watch this stupid little white girl go on tv and start crying about getting death threats and not feeling safe at school. Racist America will say she made a mistake and she is misunderstood. They’ll tell black people to get over it. #JusticeForJazzy
— Doranian (@Kings_Secret) November 1, 2017
In response to the hate crime Jazzy wrote on Instagram, “As a young African American woman I don’t want to become another statistic. When it comes to college incidents/crimes and racial cases justice needs to be served,” Rowe wrote. She said when she told people what happened they couldn’t believe it, thinking it was “straight out of a movie scene.”
In a statement posted Tuesday night, UHart President Greg Woodward said, “I am writing to you this evening to send a strong message regarding an incident that is deeply upsetting to me, our students, faculty, staff, and alumni. One of our students was the alleged victim of bullying and her story was shared across social media. Let me be clear: the accused student’s behavior was reprehensible and does not reflect the values of our institution. Let me also be clear that I am confident the University has taken all steps to pursue this matter seriously, and will continue to do so.”
Brianna Brochu was arrested by the West Hartford Police Department on October 28 and charged with second-degree breach of peace and third-degree criminal mischief, both class B misdemeanors, that each carry a maximum sentence of 6 months in prison, along with a potential fine. As reported by Heavy.com, her arraignment is scheduled for Wednesday, November 1st and she is currently free on $1,000 bail. Online records do not list an attorney for her and she has yet to be reached for comment.
Watch the full video of Jazzy talking about her experience below.
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