A Denver man pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on Thursday for fatally stabbing a passing driver with a 3-foot sword in the city’s College View neighborhood.
Patrick Browne, 40, was arrested Sept. 29, 2024, after police said he stabbed 20-year-old Isaiah Martinez after a fight.
Martinez was driving in the area when he stopped at a red light at West Evans Avenue and South Lipan Street, where Browne was standing on the corner, according to Denver police.
Browne started arguing with Martinez and a passenger in the car and threw a drink through the car window. When Martinez and the passenger got out of the car, Browne pulled a large sword out of his roller suitcase and stabbed Martinez in the stomach as he was trying to get back in the car.
Martinez died at the hospital a short time later.
Browne was charged with first-degree murder, assault and felony menacing in the stabbing. All three charges were dismissed Thursday after he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, according to court records.
Browne faces 20 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections when he’s sentenced on Nov. 13, the Denver District Attorney’s Office said.
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