A Milwaukee County jury convicted 34‑year‑old Maxwell Anderson on June 6, 2025, of first‑degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse, arson, and hiding a corpse in the April 2024 killing of 19‑year‑old college student Sade Carleena Robinson, according to reports.

Robinson, a criminal justice student at Milwaukee Area Technical College, disappeared after a first date with Anderson on April 1, 2024. Her absence prompted concern when she missed work at Pizza Shuttle the next day. Investigators found her severed leg near Lake Michigan on April 2, and later recovered additional remains scattered across Milwaukee County.

Prosecutors presented surveillance footage showing Robinson and Anderson visiting two bars before going to his apartment, where photos from Anderson’s phone depicted him groping an incapacitated Robinson. Later that same morning, Robinson’s car was found burned, with Anderson boarding a bus shortly afterward.

The trial lasted seven days; Anderson’s defense did not call witnesses. Jury deliberation took only a few hours before reaching a guilty verdict. The jury’s decision reflects the overwhelming evidence, including disturbing imagery and forensic tracking, pointing to Anderson’s guilt.

Sheena Scarbrough, Robinson’s mother, expressed both grief and resolve, seeking continued justice and remembrance for her only daughter. Her words underscore the broader crisis in the region: in Wisconsin, Black women are 20 times more likely to be murdered than white women—a grim statistic that advocates believe demands urgent legislative change.

Anderson is set to be sentenced on August 15, 2025, likely receiving life imprisonment. The case has intensified calls for improved protections and resources aimed at addressing gender‑based violence against Black women in Wisconsin.