SUMMERVILLE — Eleven months after an escaped convict appeared in her home and forced her to take him across the state, Kellie Durden faced him in the courtroom Tuesday.

After the rigors of testimony and the wait for a verdict, Durden — the victim in the case — said now that it’s finally over she didn’t want to talk about it any more.

Johnny Mack Brown, who led police on a months-long hunt after his escape from Hays State Prison in Trion and forced Durden to drive him to Northeast Georgia, will never be a free man again.

“We don’t have to worry about this person with a violent criminal history being out again,” Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney Herbert “Buzz” Franklin said.

The kidnapping conviction, Brown’s second violent felony conviction, enabled Judge Kristina Cook Graham to sentence him to life without parole.

“We are all very thankful the victim in this case was not harmed,” Graham told the court.

Brown was convicted on kidnapping, burglary and escape charges in Chattooga County Superior Court on Tuesday. He received respective sentences of life without parole, 20 years and 5 years to be served concurrently.

Brown, 53, was already serving a life sentence plus 70 years for an Athens armed robbery when he and another inmate escaped from the prison on Oct 13, 2008. He was captured in November.

The other escapee, Michael Tweedell, was captured in February.

A dimunitive Brown sat impassively in the courtroom occasionally shaking his foot as arguments concluded in the trial.

Assistant Public Defender Steve Miller said Brown never threatened Durden with a knife, and the jury agreed — he was acquitted on the aggravated assault charge. In his closing arguments Miller said Brown asked for help rather than demanding it at knifepoint.

“The ‘come with me if you want to live’ guy doesn’t say ‘ma’am will you help me,’” said Miller.

In addition, Miller br­ought up resentment felt by many Chattooga County residents about how the Department of Corrections dealt with the escape.

“You all are in the peculiar position to let the Department of Corrections know they need to train their people — not crucify their people. As they say what goes on ‘inside the wire’ does not stay ‘inside the wire,’” Miller said.

Franklin said the defense was presenting a “straw man argument” — in which one party attacks a third party in an argument to draw focus away from the point of contention.

“The defense acts like Brown just happened to be in the residence. This defendant escaped from Hays State Prison,” Franklin said.

“This is a man with a background of violence.”