A Baltimore man was found guilty of attempted murder in a downtown shooting after a tumultuous trial on Oct. 15.
Jesse Freels, 24, was convicted of 10 of his initial 12 charges, including attempted murder, assault, reckless endangerment, and five gun violations. The court dismissed one count of firearm possession as a prohibited person, and jurors failed to reach a verdict on the charge of having a gun within 100 yards of a public place.
The incident occurred on Jan. 24, 2023.
Jurors reached their verdict within hours of counsel’s closing arguments. Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Martin H. Schreiber II and attorneys thanked jurors for their service throughout the five-day trial, which was obstructed by numerous outbursts from Freels. Selecting jurors alone, a process which typically lasts one day, required three days to complete.
As counsel delivered closing arguments, Freels sat uncharacteristically quiet and motionless in his chair. A trash bin sat in front of his feet, shielding his shackled ankles from jurors.
Though criminal defendants are procedurally unshackled prior to jury trials to preserve the presumption of innocence, Freels has repeatedly demonstrated violent and unpredictable behavior since his initial appearance on May 10, 2023. Aside from threatening to throw his own feces at one judge and kill another, he has also reportedly attempted to flash his genitals during Zoom remote hearings.
Twelve armed security guards were stationed around the courtroom on the final day of trial.
The prosecution’s argument was simple — clear video footage capturing the shooting from over 30 angles, a uniquely patterned jacket with a Space Jam logo, Freels’ distinctive array of facial tattoos, and his relatively tall stature all point to his culpability, she said.
Counsel continued to debate the relevance of a “height strip” the suspect was seen standing next to inside the bus he rode while fleeing the crime scene. While some angles appeared to show the suspect standing level with the 5-foot marker, others suggested he met the 6-foot marker.
Defense attorney Andre Mahasa focused on the photographs where the suspect appeared to meet the 5-foot height marker, arguing that Freels could not possibly be the suspect due to his size. To demonstrate a one foot height difference, he removed his shoe and held it vertically above his head.
The prosecution countered by pointing to multiple other photographs taken from street surveillance footage. These stills, which showed the suspect walking past signs, made it clear he stood more than five feet tall. Furthermore, she claimed it was impossible to determine whether the bottom of the “height strip” started at ground level.
She also indicated the way the Space Jam jacket hung on the suspect’s relatively thin, tall frame.
“He is not 5 feet tall — I’m 5 feet tall,” she said. She held the jacket against her body and demonstrated how it would appear much larger against her frame than it would the defendant’s.
Mahasa also argued that the black ski mask the suspect was seen wearing should have left one of Freels’ distinctive facial tattoos exposed to be captured on camera. The mask, Mahasa said, had a singular, larger hole for both eyes, meaning the suspect’s nose bridge area would have been exposed. Freels has a dark, visible tattoo between his eyebrows.
Freels has yet to receive a date for sentencing.
