Following a guilty verdict in June, Neri Hernandez, 29, was sentenced to 20 years by Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Anthony Vittoria on Sept. 18 in connection to the fatal shooting of 40-year-old Kendall Brown.
According to court documents, on Mar. 16, 2025, Baltimore Police Department (BPD) officers responded to a reported shooting on the 4300 block of Shamrock Avenue. They discovered a male victim, later identified as Brown, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
Brown’s mother and sisters urged the court to remember that he was a father, grandfather, and brother that was taken from his family.
During the sentencing hearing, the prosecutor said that “those are not the actions of a reasonable person,” referring to the six shots that were fired by Hernandez. He also recommended that the defendant receive 20 years.
Neri Hernandez’s defense attorney, Jerry Rodriguez, asked the court to see that “this is not who Mr. Hernandez is.”
Judge Vittoria recognized it was important to respect the guilty verdict of the jury. He also said, “Mr. Hernandez took a gun to fist fight,” noting that the defendant was over-armed and over prepared. He also stated that it seems Hernandez “hasn’t wrapped his brain around” the crime he committed.
Hernandez was sentenced to 10 years for manslaughter and 10 years for use of a firearm in a felony violent crime, with a mandatory minimum of 5 years without the possibility of parole. The sentences are to be served consecutively.
