Crime & Safety

Mother of Jorelys Rivera Sues Apartment Complex

Joselinne River says the management company for the River Ridge apartment complex knew Ryan Brunn posed a threat to children.

The mother of a child who was murdered inside a Canton apartment complex in December 2011 is taking the property management company to court.

Joselinne Rivera, the mother of Jorelys Rivera, has filed a lawsuit against McCormack Baron Ragan Management Services, the company that manages the River Ridge apartments, according to WSB-TV

Rivera alleges the company was aware of the danger Ryan Brunn, the man who confessed to sexually assaulting and killing Jorelys, posed because because residents complained about him hanging out at the two playgrounds inside the complex, according to the lawsuit.

Residents also expressed concerns to the company about Brunn staring at and bothering children at the playground, according to WSB.

The lawsuit also alleges that while he was being questioned by Canton police, Brunn called the property manager and asked her to remove a duffel bag from a closet inside his apartment unit.

The news station reported the property manager did not remove the bag, and police recovered the items, which included a photo of a girl and the clothes the suspect was wearing the night the crime happened.

Rivera filed suit against the same company in 2012, accusing them of not properly checking Brunn's background before they hired him as a groundskeeper.

Brunn was arrested and charged with Jorelys' murder. He later pleaded guilty to the murder, and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

However, he hanged himself in his cell at the Georgia State Diagnostic Prison in Jackson.


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