Man Accused of Attempted Murder Accepts Plea of Time Served

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A defendant facing 15 criminal charges, including attempted first and second-degree murder, accepted a plea of time served for having a handgun on his person in connection to a shooting in April 2020.

The assistant state’s attorney and defense attorney Andrea Jaskulsky reached an agreement in the case of 22-year-old Gavin Johnson who appeared in Baltimore City Circuit Court on May 9.

Johnson accepted the state’s offer of three years, suspending all but time served, and two years of supervised probation for having a handgun on his person—a charge that carries a maximum of three years incarceration and a $2,500 fine.

In addition, the defendant must also register as a gun offender.

In reviewing the facts of the case before Judge John A. Howard, Jaskulsky said a group of young men, including her client, frequently went into a female acquaintance’s home on the 3600 block of 9th Street to charge their cell phones. On April 8, 2020, Johnson went to the home to do so when he heard someone upstairs and assumed it to be one of his friends.

A man unknown to Johnson then appeared upstairs with a gun and fired multiple times at the defendant, who suffered gunshot wounds to his back. Johnson ran outside the home where he fired one shot at the man before running away from the scene.

The defense attorney described Johnson as “the victim” in this case.

Jaskulsky said Johnson plans to voluntarily enter the ROCA program, which is an organization working with adolescents to reduce violence in the community. She also said Johnson, who earned his GED, plans on working toward getting his driver’s license and, possibly, a commercial driver’s license.