Crime scene analysts testified in the homicide trial of Jamaal Smith began on Aug. 14 before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Cynthia H. Jones.
Smith, 43, is charged with first-degree murder and related firearm offenses in connection to the Dec. 3, 2025, shooting death of 34-year-old Dante Gladney. He faces additional charges of use of a firearm in the commission of a violent crime, illegal possession of a handgun in a vehicle and possession of a firearm by a person with a prior felony conviction. Defense attorney Roya Hanna is representing Smith.
An assistant medical examiner testified that Gladney died from multiple gunshot wounds and ruled the death a homicide, adding that the shots were not fired at close range based on the absence of gunpowder residue. Bullet fragments recovered during the autopsy were examined by a forensic firearms analyst, who testified that they were consistent with .38-caliber ammunition, though she could not conclusively link both bullets to the same firearm.
According to charging documents, Gladney was shot in a shopping center on the 5900 block of Belair Road near a Dollar Tree and PNC Bank.
Surveillance footage from the store showed a silver Toyota Solara pull into the lot before the driver got out and fired multiple shots at Gladney, then fled in the car. Footage from a nearby gas station about 20 minutes earlier apparently showed the same car and driver, wearing an Orioles hat and a dark hoodie, according to charging documents. Multiple witnesses identified the driver as Smith.
Gladney was pronounced deceased just after midnight Dec. 4, 2025.
The trial is scheduled to continue Aug. 17.
