Isabellas Amor-Carlos, a 12-year-old Black girl from Dayton, Ohio, was a seventh-grade student at Charity Adams Earley Girls Academy. She had attended the school since she was in preschool and was considered an important member of the community. The school district superintendent said she would be greatly missed by both staff and her fellow students, and offered heartfelt condolences to her family and friends.
In the early morning of August 23, 2024, Isabellas was asleep in her upstairs
bedroom when she was fatally shot. Just after midnight, her family’s home on W. Fairview Avenue was struck by a barrage of gunfire. Dayton police who responded to the scene found more than 30 rifle shell casings. The investigation revealed that at least two shooters had fired high-powered rifles at multiple homes in the neighborhood, not just the one where Isabellas lived.
The killing was described by Montgomery County Prosecutor Mat Heck Jr. as “senseless, horrible, shocking.” He expressed profound sadness that a 12-year-old girl, getting a good night’s sleep before a school day, did not live to see the morning. The Dayton Police Department immediately launched an investigation to find those responsible for what they called a case of senseless violence.
Less than a week after the shooting, authorities arrested two brothers, 23-year-old Antawan Benson Jr. and 19-year-old Javen Conner, at a home in Jefferson Township. Both men were formally indicted and faced charges of murder in connection with Isabellas’s death.
Following a trial, a jury convicted Javen Conner on all charges. He was sentenced to serve 64 years to life in prison for his role in the fatal shooting. His brother, Antawan Benson Jr., was also sentenced to a prison term of at least 64 years.
