Closing arguments were delivered and jury deliberation began on Nov. 2, in the trial of Tyler Liggins, 30, in Baltimore City Circuit Court before Judge Jeanine Hong for the alleged kidnapping and murder of Travon Booth, 43.
Testifying on his own behalf, the defendant was caught by the prosecutor apparently making multiple contradictions during cross-examination between his testimony and his original statements to police.
The defendant stands accused of first-degree assault, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, kidnapping, and felony murder for the incident that occurred on the 1100 Block of West Northern Parkway on July 19, 2025.
The defendant allegedly worked along his co-conspirator and foster-brother, David Whitfield, 29, to kidnap and murder the victim after two separate altercations among the co-conspirators and the victim.
According to the defendant’s testimony, he claimed he was in his apartment getting changed after a late night out at a local bar and cigar lounge with his foster-brother when he heard a commotion outside. He claimed he heard his foster-brother and the victim arguing, and allegedly heard the victim say he would “stab” his foster-brother.
The defendant went outside, where he and his foster-brother engaged in a fight with the victim, and according to police interrogation footage, the victim was knocked unconscious. The prosecutor later caught the defendant in an apparent contradiction when he testified that the victim was “getting back up” after the first altercation.
The defendant claimed he went back to his apartment, and later went to meet his girlfriend in the lobby of the apartment building.
Allegedly after returning to his apartment after his girlfriend left, he found that the victim was in his apartment sitting on his couch.The defendant claimed that he refused to leave which led to another fight breaking out which resulted in the victim being knocked unconscious a second time.
In his testimony he claimed that he fought the victim alone in his department, but the prosecutor said that he had previously told police that he and his foster-brother were involved in the second altercation. He claimed that he left the victim upright against the couch.
When asked about why he was not concerned about the victim being unconscious for so long he stated that the fight was “not something that rattles the head,” like an “IED”[improvised explosive device] – referencing his military background.
The defendant also admitted cleaning up the blood in his apartment before he was arrested days later by Baltimore City Police (BPD) SWAT Officers and Homicide detectives.
In closing arguments, the prosecutor focused on the overwhelming amount of video evidence which showed the two individuals, allegedly the defendant and co-conspirator, carrying and putting something into the backseat of the victim’s car. She stated that the video evidence lined up with the defendant’s own testimony of carrying the victim out, but that he was lying about the extent of the injuries and the intent to kidnap and murder the victim.
The prosecutor stated that the victim was shoved into the back of the car, down by the floor in order to be concealed and kidnapped, evidenced by the amount of blood found on the floor of the car and soaked into the front seat.
They stated that it ultimately did not matter whether the victim was dead before or after the accident because the end result was the same – kidnapping and felony homicide of the victim.
In his closing arguments, defense counsel Jason Miles focused on what he said were holes in the prosecution’s narrative. He argued that the victim first had threatened the defendant’s foster-brother, and subsequently was a trespasser in the defendant’s home. He argued that in both circumstances the defendant was legally defending his home or his foster-brother. He stated that it was the victim who “changed the dynamics by refusing to leave.”
He argued that “someone inappropriately in your home,” could be moved and that “moving a person is not a crime.” He denied the kidnapping allegations by pointing out that his client moved the victim back to his own car, and claimed he immediately returned to his apartment.
The defense focused on the extensive wounds found in the victim’s autopsy after the car crash, arguing that such extensive wounds could not be attributed to his client who only engaged in a fist-fight with the victim.
He also showed interrogation footage of the co-conspirator stating that “if he died in the car accident, that’s on me.”
Deliberations began in the afternoon and are expected to continue on Nov. 3.
