Attempted Murder Convict Sentenced to Life in Prison For Shooting Wife in Southwest Baltimore in 2021

By Andrew Michaels - January 2, 2024
Attempted Murder | Court | Daily Stories | Non-Fatal Shooting | Shooting | Suspects |

Convicted attempted homicide defendant Roderick Johnson was sentenced to life in prison on Dec. 21 for shooting his wife in the streets of Baltimore’s Edgewood neighborhood in 2021.

A jury found the 38-year-old defendant guilty of attempted first-degree murder, firearm use in a crime of violence, firearm possession with a felony conviction and reckless endangerment last July, following a week-long trial before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Kendra Y. Ausby.

The prosecutor, Johnson and his defense attorney, Benjamin Charlton, returned to Judge Ausby’s courtroom on Thursday when he received a sentence of life for attempted first-degree murder, a concurrent 20 years, the first five years without parole, for firearm use in a felony or violent crime, a concurrent 15 years for firearm possession with a felony conviction and a concurrent five years for reckless endangerment.

An emotional testimony from the victim, Johnson’s wife, was likely a turning point for the jury in the defendant’s summer trial. Through tears, the victim described running out of the couple’s home and down the 700 block of Linnard Street where she was first shot on Nov. 4, 2021. The defendant continued to shoot, causing the victim to fall to the ground.

As she crawled away on her stomach, the victim testified, she turned onto her back and came face-to-face with Johnson, who she said kept shooting.

Baltimore Witness previously reported that the prosecutor said Johnson was a jealous and controlling spouse, breaking multiple cell phones belonging to his wife, accusing her of cheating and telling her to end relationships with friends she had for years. 

“All I could do was fight the bullets,” the victim testified.

Charlton questioned the victim’s memory, saying she was “blackout drunk” at the time of the shooting. No weapon, DNA or fingerprint evidence were recovered, he said.