NORTHAMPTON — An Easthampton woman originally facing murder charges for the death of her ex-boyfriend in March 2023 pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter on Monday and was sentenced to 16 to 19 years in state prison.

Jean Marie Echevarria, who was 23 years old at the time of her arrest and has no prior convictions, was arrested after police arrived to the apartment of her ex-boyfriend, Brennen Bleau, during the early hours of March 14, 2023. There, they found Bleau lying on the ground in a pool of his own blood, Echeverria having stabbed him several times with a knife following an argument.

Originally pleading not guilty to the charges of murder, Echevarria and her attorney, Maura Tansley, reached an agreement with the Northwestern district attorney’s office to downgrade the charge to manslaughter after details of the case showed strong indication that Echeverria had acted in self-defense.

In Northampton Superior Court on Monday, assistant district attorney Matthew Russo detailed more of what transpired on the night Bleau lost his life. The two had gotten in an argument and Echevarria had called her mother to pick her up, but a blizzard that night prevented her mom from doing so. Moments later, Echevarria herself called 911 after stabbing Bleau five times, including once in the chest.

Echevarria told police she and Bleau had been in a physical fight, during which she armed herself with a kitchen knife, which she swung at him after he pinned her against the kitchen counter. A neighbor previously told a Gazette reporter that Echevarria and Bleau frequently engaged in shouting arguments at the apartment, located on Culdaff Street in Easthampton.

An ambulance took Bleau to Baystate Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 4:52 a.m. Police said there was blood in the snow outside, on the landing and on the apartment door.

Although the self-defense factor led to a downgrade in the charge, Russo told the Gazette on Monday that Echevarria still faced significant prison time due to using “exceedingly more force” than necessary to defend herself in the case.

“When somebody uses lethal force in self-defense, the court looks at different factors to determine whether or not it was appropriate use of force,” Russo said. “In this case, the victim was not armed, and she armed herself and stabbed him five times.”

Russo also said that Echevarria from very early on in the case understood that her actions deserved consequence. The prosecutor also noted that Echevarria called 911 on her own that night, which also factored in the reduced charge. Russo said Echevarria’s mother had also called 911 following the phone call with her daughter, but police were already on their way by that time.

“She [Echevarria] was remorseful and she wanted to take responsibility for what happened,” Russo said. “This plea was appropriate for the set of facts that we had.”

In a statement to the Gazette, Tansley said that had Echevarria gone to trial, there was a possibility that she could be found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison.

“Ms. Echevarria never intended to cause the death of Mr. Bleau. As she shared with the court, the events unfolded in a terrifying blur, and the outcome is a tragedy beyond comprehension,” Tansley said. “From the beginning, I advocated for a manslaughter indictment because, in my view, that was the most appropriate for the facts.”

As a result of the guilty plea, Echevarria will be sent to Massachusetts Correctional Institution in Framingham, sentenced to no less than 16 years and no more than 19 years in prison.

Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.