Despite Denying He Fired Gun, Man Pleads Guilty to Assault and Possession

Thank you for reading Baltimore Witness. Help us continue our mission into 2024.

A 35-year-old Baltimore man pleaded guilty to assault and weapons charges on May 28 in connection to a shooting in West Baltimore in 2022.

Initially scheduled for a jury trial, Darren Williams II pleaded guilty for a five-year prison sentence during Tuesday’s hearing before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Paul E. Alpert.

The prosecution’s plea offer was for 25 years, suspending all but five years with the possibility of parole, and five years of supervised probation for first-degree assault and a concurrent five years without parole for firearm possession with a felony conviction.

Williams must also register as a gun offender, stay away from the victims and location of the shooting and undergo drug treatment in accordance with the plea.

The defendant was previously charged with multiple counts of attempted first and second-degree murder, first and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment as well as several firearms charges.

Even though Williams pleaded guilty, he and his defense attorney, Natalie Finegar, told Judge Alpert that he did not fire the handgun.

According to the prosecution, officers with the Baltimore Police Department were called to the 3000 block of Lyttleton Road for a reported shooting on Nov. 24, 2022. The victims, who were not injured, told police that shots were fired from a Nissan Infiniti driven by a woman with a man in the front passenger’s seat. Police also found multiple shell casings and one live round at the scene.

Both suspects were pulled over during a traffic stop about a week later, court documents state. The handgun was later found under the front passenger’s seat after a search and seizure warrant was served on Dec. 8, 2022, followed by the defendant’s arrest on Jan. 12, 2023.

The prosecutor informed the court that Williams’ drug convictions from 2008 and 2011 prohibited the defendant from possessing a firearm.