Jury Acquits 22-Year-Old Man of Brother’s Murder at Family’s Home in 2020

By Andrew Michaels - June 6, 2023
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

A 22-year-old man was found not guilty of his older brother’s murder at the family’s home in 2020, but faces up to five years incarceration for a conviction of being a minor in possession of a firearm.

Family members of Singelton Duppins filled the courtroom of Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Kendra Ausby on June 1 when counsel gave their closing arguments following a three-day trial. The jury returned their verdict on June 5, finding the defendant not guilty of first-degree murder and second-degree assault, but guilty of being a minor in possession of a firearm.

He is currently scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 23.

During her closing argument, the prosecutor reminded the jury of the looming tension that grew inside the Duppins’ household prior to the fatal shooting on Feb. 28, 2020, on the 2500 block of Gibbons Avenue. The Baltimore Police Department developed a theory that the defendant shot his brother, Graham Blake, with a gun the former had stolen from the victim a week before.

Duppins and Blake’s mother testified at trial that when she heard the gunfire, she ran down to the basement and could smell the smoke. She also saw Blake’s body on the ground.

“…She held onto Singleton to keep him from leaving,” the prosecutor said. The defendant’s father arrived soon after, but was knocked out by Duppins. “He was trying to avoid his family’s legitimate question.”

Further investigation revealed that Blake was shot in the back of his head and had blunt force trauma to his forehead and an amputated finger from when Duppins bit him.

“You know there was a fight, a real fight,” the prosecutor said. “…Mr. Duppins told detectives he didn’t want his brother to get back up again.”

“There was tension and anger and resentment building in this home,” she concluded.

However, defense attorney Roland Brown countered that there was no report that Blake’s gun was ever stolen and when the gun was recovered, it was never tested for DNA evidence.

The defendant and victim’s mother also testified that the brothers had a loving relationship and that she never saw Duppins with a gun.

“The only thing the [prosecution] has proven was possession” as Duppins was later found with the alleged murder weapon, Brown said. “No answers were truly given.”