Chestnut Hill Shooting Defendant Rejects Plea, Trial Set

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Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Melissa K. Copeland set an October trial date for defendant Antwan Eldridge, 27, after he rejected a plea deal on July 16.

Eldridge is charged with 13 offenses, including attempted first- and second-degree murder, first-degree assault, armed carjacking and other related conspiracy and firearm violations.

On Oct. 13, 2024, officers from the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) Northern District responded to the 600 block of Chestnut Hill Avenue for a report of a shooting.

According to charging documents, officers located a victim suffering from a gunshot wound to the head. The victim told officers that he was parked at the crime scene retrieving personal items when three people approached him and told him to get on the ground.

After the victim knelt, one of the individuals pulled out a gun and fired one round, striking him in the head. The group then stole the victim’s keys and drove away.

Surveillance footage shows the car leaving the area. Officers recovered the car the following day, on the 3300 block of Kimble Road.

A latent fingerprint lifted from the driver’s side of the vehicle was found to likely match Eldridge’s. After searching databases, BPD learned that Eldridge lives less than half a mile from both the incident location and the location where the vehicle was recovered.

The victim was transported to John Hopkins Hospital for treatment, and was later released with expectations for a full recovery.

During the hearing, Eldridge rejected a plea of life, suspending all but 50 years, with five years of supervised probation for the attempted first-degree murder charges, as well as a concurrent 20 years, the first five without the possibility of parole, for firearm use in a felony violent crime. The plea also included a court order to stay away from the victim.

The trial will begin later this year on Oct. 15 before Judge Nicole K. Barmore, and is set to last four days.