Tayvon Miller, 38, appeared before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Alan C. Lazerow for closing statements in his murder trial on March 7.
Miller is charged with first-degree murder, armed robbery, firearm use in a felony crime and firearm possession with a felony conviction back in June 2023 in connection to the murder of 38-year-old Frissell Townes, Jr.
The prosecution said evidence pointed to Miller’s murdering Townes and taking the victim’s backpack. A detective from the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) testified about tracing Miller’s cell phone on the day of the incident.
About 40 minutes before the shooting, the defendant’s cell appeared near 2600 block of West Patapsco Avenue and remained stationary, suggesting that the defendant was stalking Townes. Miller’s phone was tracked heading west from the crime scene after the murder at 8:52pm, consistent with the surveillance camera that allegedly caught Miller at a Gas Depot station as he was absconding.
In response, defense attorney James Sweeting III told the jury there was no DNA or surveillance to show that Miller shot Townes. Meanwhile, he added, the witness who testified “lied her way through,” the questioning, since she initially told the BPD officers who responded to the service call at West Patapsco Avenue that she didn’t see anything.
Update: The jury delivered a guilty verdict for Miller on March 7.
