Mother’s Occupation Withheld in Son’s Homicide Trial

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Jury selection began on April 11 after a motions hearing for the defendant’s mother’s occupation to be withheld during the upcoming trial.

William Holland, 28, is charged with first-degree murder, attempted first and second-degree murder, first and second-degree assault, attempted robbery, attempted carjacking, and firearms violations in connection to an incident that occurred on Dec. 12, 2020.

Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Jeannie J. Hong heard several pre-trial motions from both the prosecutor and the defendant’s defense attorney Angela Shelton.

The prosecutor began by objecting to two of the defense’s witnesses, who were later identified as Holland’s maternal and paternal grandmothers. The prosecutor said she had not been informed of the additional witnesses in a timely manner, however the defense claimed the witnesses would be called to dispute a debit card which Holland says is not his.

Judge Hong decided to wait to rule on the inclusion of the two witnesses until after jury selection concluded later today. However, she did rule on one motion from the prosecutor to refrain from identifying the defendant’s mother by her occupation. The mother works for the Baltimore Police Department as a lieutenant for the Southern District. She will instead only be referred to as the mother of Holland.

Jury selection began after the motions were heard and panel members arrived. Judge Hong said she expects opening statements to be heard tomorrow, April 12, at 9:30 a.m.