Jurors find Patrick Fowler guilty of fatally stabbing woman, her daughter
MILWAUKEE -- Jurors found 33-year-old Patrick Fowler guilty of two counts of first degree intentional homicide in the deaths of a young mother and her child. That verdict was read in court shortly after 2:30 p.m. on Friday, April 21st.
"We the jury find the defendant Patrick Fowler guilty of first degree intentional homicide of Jessica Ellenberger. We the jury find the defendant Patrick Fowler guilty of first degree intentional homicide of Madyson Marshel," the judge said as he read the verdict aloud in court.
That verdict came in moments after the jury asked to see a transcript and video of Fowler confessing to killing Ellenberger and Marshel. Their bodies were discovered inside their home near 68th and Stevenson in Milwaukee on March 19th, 2016.
Patrick Fowler
Fowler told the jury on Thursday, April 20th that he was in the bathroom when it all happened. He said he heard Ellenberger scream, and then four-year-old Madyson cried out.
"I opened the door. I seen somebody rushing at me. I threw my hand up and my hand was cut. I slammed the bathroom door and stayed in there," Fowler told the court.
Fowler said his own fear kept him from helping. When he came out of the bathroom, the mother and daughter were dead from stab wounds.
Patrick Fowler
The prosecution and defense addressed the jury Friday morning in their closing arguments.
"None of them came close to the nightmare that child had to experience, watching the monster Patrick Fowler butcher her mother. And then when he's all done, grab her close enough so her blood is on his shirt, and shove a knife into her neck," said Michael Lonski, prosecutor.
"I would submit to you that the evidence of Patrick Fowler's fear is not evidence of guilt," said Calvin Malone, defense attorney.
Jessica Ellenberger and Madyson Marshel
In the end, the jury did not buy Fowler's story. The victim's mother and grandmother gripped a photo of Madyson, taken just a few hours before she was murdered.
"We've got justice, we've got closure. Now our angels got what they deserve. He can rot in hell," said Annette Ellenberger, the victims' mother and grandmother.
As Fowler was taken back to jail, he yelled that he wanted to talk to the media -- and was not happy with his lawyer. He made it clear to the court he wants to appeal.
Patrick Fowler
Fowler will be sentenced on May 5th. He faces mandatory life in prison.
Closing arguments (Friday, April 21st)