BRATTLEBORO, VT (MyKeeneNow.com) More than three years after a fatal attack at a Brattleboro homeless shelter, Zaaina Mahvish-Jammeh has admitted to killing Leah Rosin-Pritchard, the shelter coordinator who died in the April 2023 incident.

Mahvish-Jammeh, 42, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder Tuesday, Oct. 20, in Windham Superior Court’s Criminal Division. Judge Heather Gray said prosecutors and defense attorneys are proposing a sentence of 20 years to life in prison, with 10 years to serve followed by probation for the remainder of her life. The proposed terms have not yet been finalized.

Gray ordered a pre-sentence investigation, and the court will schedule a separate sentencing hearing. Victim impact statements are expected to be presented before the sentence is imposed.

Rosin-Pritchard, 37, was working at Morningside House, a shelter operated by Groundworks Collaborative, when she was killed on April 3, 2023. According to the plea agreement, Mahvish-Jammeh was living at the shelter and requested a meeting with Rosin-Pritchard before attacking her with an ax concealed beneath a sheet. The agreement states that the blows caused life-threatening injuries to Rosin-Pritchard’s face and body.

The criminal proceedings were delayed after Mahvish-Jammeh was found mentally incompetent to stand trial in 2023. A judge later determined in 2024 that she was competent to proceed, and the case had been scheduled for trial in January.

The criminal case has unfolded alongside a civil lawsuit filed by Rosin-Pritchard’s parents against Groundworks Collaborative. They allege wrongful death and intentional negligence. A judge denied the organization’s request to dismiss the lawsuit on workers’ compensation grounds, allowing the case to proceed through discovery.

Meanwhile, a new shelter, Hope’s House, opened earlier this month at the former Morningside House site on Royal Road. Groundworks leaders have said the facility incorporates lessons from the tragedy, including changes intended to strengthen safety and improve programming.

The date of Mahvish-Jammeh’s sentencing hearing has not yet been announced.