Thank you for reading Baltimore Witness.
Consider making a donation to help us continue our mission.
By
Sage Cho
- June 26, 2025
Attempted Murder
|
Court
|
Daily Stories
|
Non-Fatal Shooting
|
Parties reached an agreement on an October trial date for attempted murder defendant Jesse Freels, 24, before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Melissa K. Copeland on June 25.
Freels, who typically attended such hearings remotely through Zoom, was not allowed to turn his camera on during the hearing due to repeated previous attempts to flash his genitals at Judge Copeland. Last October, staffers for Judge Lynn S. Mays informed Baltimore Witness that Freels threatened to throw his own feces at courtroom attendees.
Freels faces 12 charges in connection to a downtown Baltimore shooting incident from January 2023, including attempted first- and second-degree murder and assault, firearm use in commission of a violent crime, reckless endangerment, and additional firearm-related violations. Due to prior felony convictions, Freels was also prohibited from possessing a firearm at the time of the incident. He was 21 at the time of the shooting.
Charging documents state that on Jan. 24, 2023, Central District officers received a call for a shooting in the 200 block of N. Eutaw Street, just behind Lexington Market. Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) officers shared video footage that captured an individual in a Space Jam jacket and black ski mask walking up to an unnamed victim and firing several rounds. The shooter then fled on foot to Fayette Street and Liberty Road, where he boarded an MTA bus traveling west. During investigations, four 9mm shell casings were recovered from the scene.
On Feb. 3, 2023, MTA officers were monitoring surveillance cameras at the Penn-North metro station when they observed a white male – clad in the same Space Jam jacket and black ski mask – entering. Officers identified the male as Freels and found SCCY 9mm handgun with two fully loaded 10-round magazines and one round in the chamber.
Freels was apprehended and placed into custody for an outstanding arrest warrant, as well as for possessing a firearm as a prohibited person.
The handgun was transferred to firearms analysts, who compared it to the four 9mm shell casings and found a likely match on March 29, 2023.
Freels, who is represented by defense attorney Andre Mahasa, now faces trial beginning Oct. 8, before Judge Martin H. Schreiber II.