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By
Ethan Russo [former]
- August 29, 2025
Court
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Daily Stories
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Homicides
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Shooting
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The prosecution called its final witness, a police detective, to testify in the case of murder defendant Uriah Cunningham, also known as “Big Baby.”
Cunningham, 32, is charged with the murder of 43-year-old Melvin Rodgers in a Sept. 29, 2024 shooting that occurred on the 1800 block of Wilhelm Street.
On Aug. 28, a detective with the Baltimore Police Department’s (BPD) Homicide Unit delivered testimony about her investigation of the murder before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Troy K. Hill.
The detective recounted obtaining surveillance footage after arriving at the crime scene. Although no cameras captured the shooting itself, footage from the surrounding streets showed a Nissan Altima’s driving to the incident location and fleeing after the shooting took place.
During her investigation, the detective interviewed an eyewitness living across the street from the shooting who described the perpetrator as a heavyset male with a distinct scar on his throat. This appears to match Cunningham’s physical description.
The eyewitness also stated that the shooter used the alias “Big Baby,” and provided detectives with a phone number that was later linked to Cunningham through his CashApp account. Cunningham’s CashApp account included his full name and indicated his use of the nickname “Big Baby.”
Detectives obtained tracking records of the phone linked to Cunningham’s number and determined it was near the crime scene on the 1800 block of Wilhelm Street on the night of the murder.
On Oct. 5, after obtaining a warrant for Cunningham’s arrest, a police patrol unit arrested him during a traffic stop. Cunningham, said to be intoxicated but coherent, was interviewed by detectives.
When questioned as to his whereabouts on the night of the murder, Cunningham claimed to have watched football with a family member before walking home. He denied owning a firearm or having been near the area of the murder, but admitted that he sometimes used the alias “Big Baby.”
In her cross-examination, defense attorney Staci Pipkin questioned why the eyewitness to the murder was so selective in her identification of the people present at the crime scene. Crucially, someone other than Cunningham recovered the gun from the ground after it was fired, but this person was not identified by the eyewitness.
The detective suggested that the “picking and choosing” of who to identify was motivated by the witness’ concern for her own security.
Pipkin then showed body-worn camera footage of Cunningham’s arrest and the brief search of his vehicle in the early morning of Oct. 5. One officer was seen searching the vehicle’s main console, but recovered nothing of note.
Following Cunningham’s arrest and interview with detectives, BPD acquired a warrant to conduct a thorough search of his vehicle. Body-worn camera footage showed a detective allegedly recovering a handgun from the same main console searched during Cunningham’s arrest.
With the testimony phase of the trial complete, closing arguments will occur on Aug. 29.