Conjecture and gossip lead the discussion on why young teens, Essix Robinson and his brother, Zy Rel, were in a vacant home on Bowser Avenue on Aug. 23 of last year. The ‘bando,’ as abandoned homes are called, and identified by the boys’ grandmother as 4423 Bowser Ave.,was the scene of a shooting between Essix, then 14, and Jorge Mendez-Cornejo. The shooting left Mendez-Cornejo wounded, according to a news release from the Fort Wayne Police Department.

This time around, at a second trial, hope turned to disappointment. Thursday, a jury found Allen guilty on two counts: child neglect resulting in death and aggravated battery. Both are Level 1 felonies meaning considerable prison time. On each count, he could be sentenced between 20 to 40 years.

Allen, 35, is accused of delivering a blow so hard to his 17-month-old daughter’s abdomen that her mesentery was “shredded,” Wagner said. She died early on Feb. 25, 2021.