Jury selection was postponed April 21 in a McDonald’s parking lot murder trial because there was a shortage of jurors, as well as procedural issues.
Dajuan Heath, 24, is charged with first-degree murder, armed robbery, two counts of conspiracy and three gun violations in connection to the death of Briane Gaye, 38, last August.
Gaye was killed in a McDonald’s parking lot during the early morning hours of Aug. 9, 2025. Surveillance cameras captured the victim riding a scooter on the 2500 block of W. Franklin Street when two other scooter riders approached and initiated a confrontation.
Gaye was shot multiple times in the melee, and the suspects stole his scooter before fleeing. An anonymous tip later identified a person said to be Heath as one of the two suspects, and he was detained on Aug. 28, 2025 while leaving a University of Maryland rehabilitation center.
Heath’s co-defendant, 17-year-old Tristin Cofield, is being tried as an adult for his suspected role in the armed robbery. Despite their shared conspiracy charges, the defendants will be tried separately due to filing errors made by the state.
Heath, who is represented by private defense attorney Derrick Hamlin, is set to return to Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Kendra Ausby’s courtroom tomorrow, April 22, for jury selection.
