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By
Mark McNeill
- July 9, 2025
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Just weeks after rejecting a plea that would have dismissed part of his case, Franklin Titus Evans, 24, accepted a five year prison sentence without the possibility of parole on July 9 in a firearm possession case.
Evans appeared before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Nicole K. Barmore and agreed to a plea deal stemming from two firearm-related incidents earlier this year. Under the terms of the agreement, Evans will serve a maximum of five years without parole, with credit for time served dating back to Jan. 25.
The defense petitioned the court for drug treatment service, emphasizing Evans’ readiness to address any underlying substance issues, and presented it as a key component to the plea deal.
Evans was initially charged with multiple offenses, including possession of a regulated firearm with a prior disqualifying felony, discharging a gun within city limits and carrying a handgun on his person. According to charging documents, police arrested Evans on Jan. 7, in the 300 block of W. Lexington Street, where he was found with a semi-automatic handgun.
A subsequent search of Evans’s smartphone revealed several incriminating videos. One video, dated Jan. 3, allegedly showed Evans inside his kitchen loading and firing a handgun toward a nearby residential area. In other clips, he was seen pointing the firearm at the camera while singing, and displaying a Ziploc bag of pills he described as ecstasy.
At a hearing on May 21, the prosecution offered to drop the charges related to the discharging incident if Evans accepted a five-year mandatory minimum sentence for illegal firearm possession. That deal, which also required him to register with the Maryland Gun Offender Registry and serve the full sentence without parole, was rejected.