Judge Sentences 22-Year-Old Defendant to Life For 2021 Double Homicide

By Hannah Rainer [former] - December 5, 2023
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

On Dec. 1, courtroom emotions were high during the sentencing of a young man who was found guilty of the deaths of two men in August 2021. 

Raekwon Griffin, 22, was convicted on June 30 of first-degree felony murder, armed robbery and two counts of firearm use in a felony-violent crime in relation to the murders of Darrin Stewart, 33, and Brian Palmer, 26.

Alongside Griffin, Montay Shuler, 24, was charged in the same crime, with three counts of first-degree murder, armed robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, firearm use in a felony violent crime and illegal possession of a regulated firearm.

On Oct. 3, Shuler was scheduled for trial by Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Melissa M. Phinn. His trial is set to begin on Jan. 8, 2024, before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Barry G. Williams.  

The prosecution explained the impact that Griffin’s crime had had upon the victims’ families and surrounding community. Noting that this was an “utmost, heinous crime,” the prosecutor asked Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Jeffrey M. Geller to impose a sentence of life plus 40 years, with the first 10 without parole.

The mother of one of the victim’s took the stand, stating, “I have three wishes. I wish Raekwon Griffin was not there that day. I wish my son had got away. And I wish to God I was not so jealous of his family who can still see him.”

Defense attorney Kenneth Man argued this crime was a result of a “combination of drugs and violence in this city.” He said prior to this offense, Griffin was a respectable, upstanding citizen who had no prior arrests. To make his point, he gave Judge Geller photos and letters from Griffin’s family, which showed “a good childhood that you or I would have enjoyed.”  

Griffin’s mother pleaded for leniency, “He is a good kid. The situation was unfortunate. I can’t keep apologizing. I do not want to be in your shoes. But I am asking and praying that my child won’t be in jail for the rest of his life. Please be lenient on my son.”

The defense then asked for a sentence of life, suspend all but 40 years with the first 10 years without parole. 

Judge Geller spoke, offered his condolences to the victims’ families. He remarked it was a devastating situation all around, but a jury had convicted Griffin of felony murder. While he thought it was not appropriate to go above the sentencing guidelines as the prosecution wanted, he also believed the defense asked for too little.

The judge sentenced Griffin to life plus 25 years, with no chance of parole for the first 10 years. He urged Griffin to try to better himself and not to get weighed down by the sentence, offering him a modification later on if he could prove that he wanted to do better.

According to documents from the District Court of Maryland, around 8:20 p.m. on August 5, 2021, Baltimore Police officers were called to the 4300 block of Flowerton Road after reports of shots fired. Upon arriving at the scene, Palmer and Stewart were found suffering from several gunshot wounds in their vehicle. They later passed as a result of their injuries. Griffin and Shuler were identified via fingerprint evidence and were witnessed fleeing the scene. The two were later brought in and charged by police for their deaths.