Left: Peter McKenna Jr. (KOLD). Right: Brianna Elise Zerth (Peoria Police Dept.)
An Arizona woman who beat her cousin to death with a claw hammer and then apparently tried to vacuum up the blood has been sentenced to decades behind bars.
Brianna Zerth, 33, admitted to attacking Peter McKenna Jr., 33, with a hammer on May 4, 2022. She pleaded guilty in April to one count of domestic violence manslaughter, and she was sentenced Friday to 21 years in prison, according to court records.
As Law&Crime previously reported, officers with the Peoria Police Department responded to an emergency call just after noon on May 5, 2022, about a dead man at a home in the area of 112th Avenue and West Diana Avenue. First responders found McKenna — who appeared to have suffered multiple blunt-force trauma injuries — and declared him dead.
A preliminary investigation revealed that Zerth was related to the victim, who lived in the home where he was found. Zerth reportedly told police that she and McKenna had been up late the previous night drinking alcohol when they began to fight. She reportedly said the specifics were “blurry,” claiming she woke up to find McKenna dead on the floor in a pool of blood.
According to a report by local news collective AZ Family, Zerth told police she covered her cousin with a jacket and tried to clean up the scene — including by trying to vacuum up the blood. She also apparently tried to pick up the broken glass because she was afraid of her daughter stepping on it.
She reportedly called the police after that, telling them that McKenna was “stiff and cold to the touch.”
Tucson CBS affiliate KOLD reported that Zerth later claimed McKenna was strangling her during the fight and caused “significant trauma,” which an examination corroborated.
According to the regional outlet, Zerth was initially charged following her arrest but later released when prosecutors declined to formally charge her due to a lack of evidence.
As part of Zerth’s plea, prosecutors dropped charges of assault with a deadly weapon and evidence tampering. She was originally indicted on one count each of second-degree intentional murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, and tampering, destroying, or altering physical evidence.
According to court records, 21 years is the maximum sentence allowed for domestic violence manslaughter; Zerth was credited with 1,056 days behind bars, or just under three years.
Jerry Lambe contributed to this report.
