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By
Andrew Michaels
- May 17, 2024
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A 32-year-old Baltimore man accused of driving a shooter to and from the scene of a shooting was sentenced for being an accessory after the fact.
On May 16, the prosecution asked Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Anthony F. Vittoria to impose the maximum sentence for defendant Ernest Ford of 10 years for accessory to first-degree murder after the fact. According to the prosecutor, the defendant drove the shooter, Marquis Poteat, to the 4400 block of Moravia Road, where Poteat then shot 49-year-old MTA bus driver Frankye Duckett.
Ford allegedly shot Duckett through the bus windows before climbing inside and firing more shots.
Poteat pleaded guilty to life, suspending all but 60 years, for first-degree murder and a concurrent 20 years for firearm use in a felony or violent crime in May 2023.
According to Ford’s defense counsel, Tony Garcia, counsel was able to reach a plea agreement for Ford in December 2022; however, the case faced a series of postponements for sentencing.
Garcia said the defendant did not know Poteat had a gun or intended to kill Duckett. Poteat also threatened to kill Ford if he did not comply. Poteat and Ford’s families were close, defense counsel explained, giving the former “intimate knowledge and access” to Ford’s family.
During Thursday’s hearing, Ford apologized for “freezing up,” but acknowledged that he could not have reasonably stopped Poteat, who he said was only 20 feet away when he shot Duckett. Ford said Poteat could have easily turned and shot him if he did not comply.
Judge Vittoria sentenced Ford to 10 years, suspending all but four years, and three years of supervised probation, for being an accessory to murder after the fact—a sentence he will serve on home detention. The first-degree murder charge against Ford was dismissed by the prosecution.