North Avenue Shooting Suspect Rejects Plea, Faces Late September Trial

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A man charged with attempted murder rejected a plea offer of life, suspending all but 40, before Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Melissa K. Copeland on June 23. The case is now expected to proceed to trial late September.

Joseph Linwood Edwards, 25, is charged with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault, firearm use in a violent crime, reckless endangerment, and four more firearm-related violations for allegedly shooting a 26-year-old in the head last spring.

According to charging documents, on April 23, 2024, at approximately 11:22 p.m., Baltimore Police Department (BPD) officers responded to the 3100 block of W. North Avenue for a report of a shooting, and located the victim lying in the street with an apparent gunshot wound to his head. The victim was transported to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he was listed in critical condition at the time.

Crime lab technicians secured a crime scene and recovered one 9mm shell casing, a cellphone, a key fob, and a Spin electric scooter.

Recovered surveillance footage showed the suspect – a Black male with a beard, a distinct black puffer coat, torn jeans, and blue-and-white New Balance sneakers – producing a handgun from his waistband and pointing it at the victim, who was seen backing away. Seconds later, the suspect fired, and the victim was seen lying on the ground.

Police were able to positively identify Edwards as the suspect through still images taken from the footage. He was arrested earlier this year on Feb. 4, at a Baltimore County Hotel.

The terms of the prosecution’s plea included a sentence of life, suspending all but 40 years, followed by five years of supervised probation for the charge of attempted first-degree murder. For the charge of firearm use in a violent crime, the prosecution offered 20 years, the first five without parole, as well as a no contact order with the victim and registration to the Maryland Gun Offender Registry.

Edwards and his defense counsel, Daniel P. Mooney, rejected the offer. Edwards is now slated for a three-day trial beginning Sept. 8 before Judge Hope Tipton.