Baltimore police say a 42-year-old man is now in custody, charged in a late February shooting in South Baltimore that killed a 21-year-old. The suspect, identified by authorities as Craig Anthony Parker, is facing a first-degree murder count in the case.
According to a press release from the Baltimore Police Department, detectives allege Parker was wanted in connection with the killing of 21-year-old Kyree Plummer in the 3500 block of Fifth Street. Members of the department's Warrant Apprehension Task Force arrested Parker on March 24, then took him to the Central Booking & Intake Facility, where he was charged with first-degree murder.
Police say the violence unfolded on the evening of Feb. 25, when officers were called to the 3500 block of 5th Street and found a man suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. The victim later died at a hospital on Feb. 26, according to Baltimore Witness. Investigators have not publicly discussed a motive and are still looking for witnesses, including anyone who may have video from the area.
How detectives say they caught him
In their account of the arrest, the Baltimore Police Department said Warrant Apprehension detectives located Parker and took him into custody without incident on March 24, then processed him through Central Booking. Police asked anyone with information to contact Southern District homicide detectives at 410-396-2100 or Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7LOCKUP.
Legal note
First-degree murder is the most serious homicide charge under Maryland law and can result in a sentence of life imprisonment, with the possibility of life without parole in some cases, the state's highest court has explained. The Court of Appeals' opinion in Bellard v. State lays out the sentencing framework and notes that Maryland abolished the death penalty in 2013, leaving life terms as the maximum penalty.
Local context
The shooting happened along a stretch of 5th Street that has seen other violence this winter. Hoodline previously reported on a Feb. 26 shooting near the neighborhood firehouse in a story titled Gunfire Erupts Outside Brooklyn Firehouse, which underscored how neighbors have grown wary of repeated incidents on the corridor.
