22-Year-Old Murder Defendant Gets Trial Date

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One year after being arrested for a fatal shooting, a 22-year-old man received a trial date at Baltimore City Circuit Court on Aug. 12.

Baltimore resident John Brown Jr. was arrested on Aug. 14, 2020, for allegedly shooting 31-year-old Yohannes Carr on the 2400 block of Etting Street the week before, according to the Baltimore Sun

During reception court on Aug. 12, Brown was offered a plea deal of life, suspending all but 60 years, with five years probation, for first-degree murder, and 20 years, the first five without the possibility of parole, to be served concurrently for firearm use in a violent crime.

Defense attorney Brandon Taylor rejected the offer on Brown’s behalf. Brown previously rejected the same offer, but without the firearm use in violent crime charge, on June 1.

Brown is also charged with having a handgun in his vehicle on a public road, carrying or wearing a handgun on his person, and possession of a firearm with a prior felony conviction. He also faces three counts of illegal possession of a regulated firearm.

After Brown waived his right to a speedy trial, Judge Melissa M. Phinn scheduled the case for trial before Judge Jeffrey M. Geller on Jan. 18, 2022.