A 27-year-old murder convict heard from multiple members of a grieving family on Feb. 19 as he was sentenced to serve life plus 35 years for his role in a fatal shooting last spring.
Following a jury trial overseen by Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Barry G. Williams last October, defendant Matthew Crawley was convicted on all counts for the murder of 28-year-old Taijah Addison, which occurred in Yale Heights during the early afternoon of March 6, 2025.
Jurors found the defendant guilty of first-degree murder, using a firearm to carry out the crime and possessing a firearm despite a prior felony conviction that disqualified him from doing so.
Prior to sentencing, the state pointed to surveillance footage shown at trial that distinctly captured Crawley shooting Addison on the 700 block of Yale Avenue, noting the convict “couldn’t stop laughing and smiling” upon his arrest despite the severity of the accusations against him. Prosecutors characterized the incident as a deliberate murder recorded on video, and Addison’s family claimed it permanently altered their lives.
The court was informed that Crawley and Addison had been former friends, a fact that intensified the sorrow conveyed by the latter’s family. To no avail, Addison’s mother and father implored the defendant to confess his motive for the murder.
“I want my baby back,” said Addison’s mother, in tears.
Recalling the phone call that broke the news of her brother’s death, Addison’s sister called the day of her brother’s death “the worst day of my life.”
“We are all broken,” remarked another sister as she described the family’s persisting devastation. The victim’s sisters accused Crawley of carrying out the murder because he had been “jealous of” their brother.
Meanwhile, defense attorney John Deros urged Judge Williams to consider Crawley’s tumultuous background when determining his sentence, noting the convict lost his father at a young age and demonstrates “deeply rooted problems that have not been discovered.” According to Deros, Crawley witnessed several traumatic fatalities as a child that would go on to influence his actions in adulthood.
As the hearing drew a close, the convict declined his right to address the court.
