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HOUSTON - After four years, a Houston man is behind bars again for stalking a woman he had a relationship with for 10 years.
Derek W. Brown, 48, was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Thursday for repeatedly stalking and harassing a woman, said Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced.
Brown was convicted after a two-day trial in March for stalking a woman he had a relationship with in the past. Officials say he repeatedly harassed and threatened the woman and her family for more than 10 years.
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"Stalking is yet another form of domestic violence, and we will do everything possible to keep victims safe when they are facing this sort of danger," Ogg said. "We sought justice in this case, and hopefully the victim can move forward with her life now."
The woman filed multiple protective orders and criminal charges of stalking against him starting in 2011, according to authorities. He was convicted in the first stalking case in 2014 and sentenced to five years in prison.
Brown was released in 2019 and started stalking the woman again days later.
On Wednesday, the trial continued and witnesses testified in the punishment phase. State District Judge Mark Kent Ellis handed down the 35-year sentence.
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Assistant District Attorney Erica Robinson Winsor, who is assigned to the DA’s mental health division, said experts testified the victim’s life was in danger as long as Brown was on the street.
"This victim sought protection every way she could, first by filing the original criminal charge and through multiple protective orders, and none of that was enough to keep her safe," Winsor said. "By going through this trial and obtaining this conviction, we are able to keep her and her family safe for many years to come."