As trial proceedings continued on Dec. 8 in a January 2022 housemate stabbing case, jurors heard testimony from witnesses and viewed body-worn camera footage that prosecutors say connects 46-year-old Jamal Smith to the death of 29-year-old Robert Parker.
Smith, who is representing himself, is charged with first- and second-degree murder and related assault offenses for his alleged role in the fatal stabbing of Parker, which occurred Jan. 27, 2022 inside a residence on the 1500 block of E. 28th Street, a property where tenants rented individual rooms.
The prosecution first called the property owner where both men lived in 2022, who testified that she rented rooms to individuals in need of temporary housing, including Smith at the time of the incident.
The owner told jurors she received three phone calls from Parker on the night of the stabbing. During the final call, she said Parker cried out, “Help me, call 911 — he stabbed me,” while she heard “rumbling” in the background.
During cross-examination, Smith questioned the property owner’s involvement, asking, “Do you live there?” She replied no. Smith then pressed her on why Parker would notify her about the attack before alerting the police. “I’m not sure,” she answered.
A detective testified that officers had responded to an earlier dispute between Smith and Parker that same evening.
Jurors watched body-worn camera footage showing both men arguing outside the home appearing intoxicated.
“He think he run sh*t … he just moved here, started beefing with me over West Baltimore,” Smith can be heard saying in the footage. “I told him, ‘Meet me outside and fight me like a man.’”
At approximately 9 p.m., the same detective and other officers were dispatched back to the residence following a third-party 911 call. When they arrived, they saw blood outside the home. Looking through a window, they observed more blood inside.
Upon entering, they found Parker unconscious and bleeding heavily on the kitchen floor. Officers called for medics and began clearing the residence. In the basement, they found two tenants later identified as a couple who appeared shocked when they came upstairs and saw Parker’s condition. One was heard in footage repeating, “Oh, my God.” The pair were transported to Baltimore’s homicide unit at approximately 9 p.m. for questioning.
Additional bodycam footage showed officers following a trail of blood leading from the residence to a storage shed located about a block away. Inside, they allegeddly found Smith sitting down on a mattress with bloody hands.
Smith’s trial is set to continue before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Cynthia H. Jones.
