Mount Vernon Man Sentenced For 'Horrific' 2018 Robbery-Murder

MOUNT VERNON, NY — One of three men accused in a 2018 murder and robbery in Mount Vernon was sentenced in County Court Thursday to 20 years to life in prison for the murder, with a concurrent sentence of 20 years plus five years of post-release supervision for attempted murder and robbery.

Tasjawn White was 19 when he pleaded guilty in November 2019 to Murder in the First Degree in the death of 24-year-old Donovan Brown. White later claimed that he was mentally ill, didn't understand what he was doing when he entered the plea and requested to reverse it. Judge George E. Fufidio rejected that request, prosecutors said.

White and his associate Pierre Mensah were involved in a series of events on March 14, 2018, including an initial robbery of an unnamed victim and — when that victim returned to the location with Brown and another friend to see if he could locate any of his stolen belongings — an attempted robbery in which two of the three were shot and Brown was killed, prosecutors said.

White was arrested after the incident, which took place near the Mount Vernon West Metro-North train station, and has been held at the Westchester County jail.

He "took a good man off this earth," Brown’s mother said at the sentencing, according to prosecutors. Judge Fufidio spoke of the “horrific nature” of the underlying facts.

“Our thoughts are with Donovan Brown’s family and loved ones and also with Tasjawn White’s other victim, who was shot repeatedly and whose life was changed forever,” said Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah. “I am committed to working to prevent crimes like this by getting illegal guns off the streets and out of our communities.”

In addition to the First Degree Murder charge against White, both White and Mensah were charged with Murder in the Second Degree, Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, Assault in the First Degree, Attempted Assault in the First Degree and additional felonies.

White’s uncle, Phillip Spearman, also faced felony charges stemming from the incident, including Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, Hindering Prosecution in the Second Degree and Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fourth Degree.

Mensah and Spearman’s cases are still pending.