72-Year-Old Man Denied Bail, Awaits Retrial for Fatally Stabbing Girlfriend

By Andrew Michaels - August 30, 2022
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects | Victims |

A 72-year-old Baltimore man accused of fatally stabbing his girlfriend in 2018 will remain held without bail as he awaits a retrial following a successful appeal earlier this year.

In October 2019, a jury found Michael Allen guilty of first-degree murder and possession of a deadly weapon for stabbing Elizabeth Holland 13 times in her bedroom on the evening of June 1, 2018, the prosecutor informed Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Cynthia Jones during a bail review hearing on Aug. 30. Allen appealed his conviction and sentence of life in prison and previously appeared for a bail review on Aug. 16, which was postponed due to his defense attorneys’ absence.

During Tuesday’s proceedings, Allen was joined by one of his defense attorneys, Robert Cohen, as the latter informed the court that his client called Baltimore Police after finding his girlfriend laying unresponsive in a bed upstairs. Allen told police that he was walking their dog when he returned home and found the front door open, according to Cohen.

Police investigation did not find any signs of forced entry but did find Holland’s blood on Allen’s arm, in his dog’s fur, and on some money belonging to Holland that was found inside the center console of the defendant’s vehicle.

Cohen said that Allen was cooperative with law enforcement during the investigation and described the case as “circumstantial” before asking for his client’s release on home monitoring.

The prosecutor countered that Allen should not receive bail “given the violent nature” of the case.

Judge Jones agreed and denied the defendant’s release.

Allen is scheduled to appear in reception court on Nov. 7.