Judge to Consider Vacating Guilty Plea in Decade-Old Homicide Case

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A homicide defendant who has been incarcerated for roughly a decade motioned for the court to throw out his guilty plea at the Baltimore City Circuit Court on July 16.

Suliman Abdul-Wahid allegedly stabbed 21-year-old Jerry Harden at a house on the 7000 block of McLean Boulevard on Nov 4., 2010, according to the Baltimore Sun. Abdul-Wahid, 41, then set fire to the building in an attempt to cover up the crime.

Eyewitness testimony and DNA evidence led to Abdul-Wahid’s arrest in October 2011, almost a year later. He was sentenced to 30 years, with five years probation upon release, for first-degree murder in December 2012.

On Friday, Abdul-Wahid appeared at the courthouse during a post-conviction hearing, where the victim’s father and aunt were also present.

His defense attorney, Nora Fakhri, tried to convince the court that Abdul-Wahid would not have pleaded guilty if not for his former defense counsel’s ineffectiveness.

Abdul-Wahid said his prior defense attorney neither reviewed discovery material with him nor investigated the criminal history of the witnesses who identified him. Abdul-Wahid also said his attorney incorrectly gave him the impression that a drop of blood matching his DNA was found next to the body.

The prosecution argued that any potential mistakes made by Abdul-Wahid’s former defense attorney did not nearly rise to the level necessary to prove that he would not have pleaded guilty otherwise.

According to the prosecution, police had a mountain of evidence against the defendant, including eyewitness statements and dead skin cells under the victim’s nails that matched Abdul-Wahid’s DNA.

Judge Shannon E. Avery said she will issue a written decision on the matter within 30 days.