Counsel Agrees on Trial Date for Man Accused of Shooting Girlfriend in the Head, Burning Her Body

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Following two days of pre-trial motions, the trial of homicide defendant Jermaine Jeter is expected to move forward next week for the brutal murder of his girlfriend in October 2021.

This will be the first of Jeter’s eight cases to be tried in Baltimore City Circuit Court for charges in separate incidents that involve murder, attempted murder, arson, kidnapping, assault, burglary, property destruction, and theft between April 2021 and October 2021, according to the Maryland Judiciary website.

The 40-year-old defendant’s murder, arson, and multiple weapons charges stem from an incident on Oct. 24, 2021, when the Baltimore City Fire Department extinguished a vehicle fire on the 4900 block of Franklintown Road and found 39-year-old Leandrea Sampson’s body with a gunshot wound to her head and shoulder, Baltimore Police previously reported.

Pre-trial motions for Jeter’s murder case were held on March 31 and April 3 before Judge Myshala Middleton before moving to Judge Melissa Phinn’s reception court on April 4.

During Tuesday’s proceeding, defense attorney Brandon Taylor requested his client’s five-day murder trial begin on April 10 as the attorney needed to review new discovery that he said he’s been receiving from the prosecution over the past two weeks. Judge Phinn and the prosecutor agreed on the date, with Judge Lawrence Fletcher-Hill presiding.

A trial date of Oct. 31 before Judge Paul Alpert was also set to begin trying Jeter’s remaining cases after the prosecution’s request to join the cases together was denied. However, the prosecutor told Judge Phinn on Tuesday that it was unlikely that the state’s attorney’s office would have to try every case.

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