Attempted Murder Defendant Still Undecided on Plea Offer

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On Dec. 22, Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Melissa M. Phinn scheduled the trial for a 32-year-old attempted murder defendant in the absence of a decision on a plea offer from earlier this week.

Mario Emmanuel Jones is charged with attempted first- and second-degree murder, first- and second-degree assault, firearm use in a felony violent crime, having a handgun on his person, having a loaded handgun on his person and firing a gun in Baltimore City.

This hearing was a continuance from Dec. 18, when Jones’ attorney Natalie Finegar said she had not yet advised her client on the plea agreement’s terms and asked for additional time to go over it with him.

In court Friday, Finegar said she had not yet reviewed all the evidence in Jones’ case or had an opportunity to discuss it with him, once again delaying a decision on the plea offer.

Judge Phinn scheduled Jones’ trial date in the event he chooses to reject the offer. Jones’ two-day trial will begin on April 30, 2024, before Judge Jennifer B. Schiffer.

Per previous Baltimore Witness reporting, Jones is charged for allegedly shooting through his ex-girlfriend’s front door on the 1500 block of East Lanvale Street on July 10.