A downtown block that is usually quiet before sunrise turned into a crime scene over the Independence Day weekend, and now one Hagerstown resident is behind bars while another is on the run in connection with a deadly shooting.
Early-morning shooting downtown
Officers were called around 3:30 a.m. on Sunday, July 5 to the first block of East Antietam Street, where they found 30‑year‑old Dalonte Dametrius Young suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Young was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Daily Voice. Detectives with the Hagerstown Police Department opened a homicide investigation that quickly focused on two local suspects.
Suspects and warrants
Investigators identified 38‑year‑old Michael Timothy Wilder and 39‑year‑old Cierra Candice Bryant as suspects and said arrest warrants were issued on July 7 charging both with first‑degree murder and related offenses, as reported by The Herald‑Mail. Police have not disclosed a possible motive or provided a public account of what led up to the gunfire.
Arrest and custody
According to a later case update reported by DC News Now, officers arrested Cierra Candice Bryant on July 9. She is being held without bond at the Washington County Detention Center. Michael Wilder remains at large, and police say the search for him is very much active.
Legal implications
Both suspects face a first‑degree murder charge, the most serious type of homicide offense under Maryland law. A conviction for first‑degree murder can carry life imprisonment and, in some cases, life without the possibility of parole, according to legal references such as FindLaw.
Investigation ongoing
The Hagerstown Police Department's Criminal Investigations Unit continues to lead the case and is still asking for the public's help. Anyone with information about the shooting or about Wilder's whereabouts is urged to contact Detective Jason Ackerman at 301‑790‑3700, ext. 242, or submit information through the department's tip email, as detailed by The Herald‑Mail.
