Baltimore prosecutors want to try 5 defendants together in mass shooting
BALTIMORE — Prosecutors are hoping to prosecute the five people charged in connection with the July shooting at a Baltimore housing complex together in one trial.
The development came to light Friday when the cases of two young men charged in the July 2 shooting, which left two dead and 28 others wounded, came up on the city’s Reception Court docket. Tristan Jackson and Aaron Brown, both 18, each face several counts of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder stemming from what has been described as one of Baltimore’s worst mass shooting events.
The shooting in the Brooklyn Homes happened around 12:30 a.m. after a daylong Brooklyn Day block party meant to serve as a reunion for current and former residents of public housing complex. A police after action report blamed the shooting on multiple failures, including officer “indifference,” lapses in community policing, flawed decisions by supervisors who failed to call for backup and delays in escalating the growing gathering up the chain of command.
Nobody has been charged yet in the fatal shootings of 18-year-old Aaliyah Gonzalez and 20-year-old Kylis Fagbemi.
Meanwhile, prosecutors are proceeding with the cases of Jackson, Brown and three minors, who face adult charges.
Chief State’s Attorney Michael Dunty, head of the Baltimore prosecutors’ office’s homicide unit, said in court Friday that he filed a motion asking a judge to conjoin the cases of all five defendants.
“The case involves over 12,000 pages of physical documents” and hundreds of hours of video, Dunty said.
Assistant Public Defender Amanda Savage, who represents Jackson, and defense attorney Roya Hanna, who represents Brown, said in court Friday they oppose the motion.
Michael Clinkscale, an attorney for a teen charged with firearms offenses and inciting a riot at the public housing complex, told The Baltimore Sun that he filed papers arguing against conjoining the cases, but declined to comment further.
A judge ruled the case of Clinkscale’s client, who is 17, will remain in adult court. Clinkscale previously said his client was carrying a toy gun the night of the shooting.
On Friday, Baltimore Circuit Judge Melissa Copeland set a hearing March 7 to determine whether the cases will be tried together. Circuit Judge Jeffrey Geller will preside over that proceeding.
Dunty said Friday that it remains to be seen whether the cases of the other two minors charged in the shooting will stay in adult court or be transferred to juvenile court, where penalties focus on rehabilitation rather than punishment. If someone is found guilty in juvenile court, a judge can sentence them to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Services, whose jurisdiction over a person ends when they turn 21.
Both teens have hearings in February to determine which court their trial will be held in, Dunty said in court.
According to Dunty, Juvenile Services has completed its evaluations of whether the teens are suitable for juvenile court and prepared reports explaining their determinations.
It is up to a judge to make the decision, considering factors such as the nature of the charges, public safety, the minor’s background and their amenability to treatment offered by juvenile services.
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