Circuit Court Judge Grants Bail for Homicide Defendant in Bar Fight Turned Fatal Shooting Case

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Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Kendra Y. Ausby granted a Baltimore man facing homicide charges bail on Feb. 14.

According to the judge, defendant Keith Mario Luckey must surrender all firearms, and his passport, have no contact with the victim’s family, and stay away from the incident location, ChrisT Bar on the 4000 block of E. Lombard Street.

Luckey, 40, is charged with second-degree murder, use of a firearm during a felony violent crime, use of an assault weapon with a rapid trigger activator with a magazine with a capacity of more than ten rounds of ammunition in the commission of a crime of violence, and reckless endangerment in connection to the fatal shooting of 35-year-old Kevin Torres on Nov. 7, 2022.

According to CBS Baltimore News, on the day of the incident, the defendant admitted to shooting Torres due to the victim throwing a brick at the defendant’s head.

Defense counsel Michael Tomko stated that his client has no criminal conviction and is a member of the U.S. Guard. Tomko described him as having been trained to serve the people and the community for 20 years.

Tomko stated there was no reason to think the defendant would flee or fail to appear; therefore, he asked the court to place the defendant on home detention.

The prosecutor however said the public needs protection from Luckey

On the night of the incident, the defendant was working as a security guard in the bar when a fight broke out. All those involved were put out of the bar.

According to the prosecutor, the defendant attacked the victim due to one of his family members being involved in the fight. The defendant allegedly shot at the victim eight times while in a crowd of people.

The prosecutor said the defendant did not react in that situation the way he had been trained to respond.

Luckey’s next hearing is scheduled for May 23.