A 40-year-old Baltimore man accused of firing a gun into the air near small children during a heated custody drop-off has been released without bail. Steve Silver walked out of a Baltimore City Circuit Court bond hearing on his own recognizance Wednesday, even as prosecutors argued he should remain locked up ahead of trial.
The hearing was held before Judge Dana M. Middleton, who denied the state's motion to detain Silver without bond, according to Baltimore Witness. Silver is accused of two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of second-degree assault, use of a firearm in a violent crime, reckless endangerment, and discharging a gun within Baltimore City limits. The case stems from an August 20 confrontation during a child drop-off involving Silver's stepdaughter's biological father.
A Warning Shot Fired Mid-Argument
Court documents describe a heated argument that broke out between Silver and the child's biological father at the moment of drop-off. The outlet's report states that the biological father struck Silver on the head, after which Silver allegedly fired his gun into the air as a warning shot. The man fled the scene once the shot was fired, the same report notes.
Police responding to a shots-fired call found Silver still at the scene, and according to the same court documents, he was cooperative throughout the encounter. An investigator on the case told the court that Silver's cooperation supported releasing him on his own recognizance, the outlet's report notes.
Prosecutors Pushed Back Over Children Nearby
The state countered that small children were nearby when the gun was fired and argued that Silver was actually struck while reaching for the weapon, not before. Prosecutors used those details to argue for detention, framing the warning shot as a public hazard rather than a justified reaction. Maryland law also addresses unlawful firearm discharge, as discussed by attorney Seth Okin.
Judge Middleton acknowledged that the presence of children was a legitimate concern but ultimately denied the motion to hold Silver without bail, per the bond hearing coverage. Silver still faces a reckless endangerment charge.
Defense Cited Caregiving Role, No Violent History
Defense attorney Akiva Gross had asked that Silver be held on home detention rather than released outright, and Silver was in fact approved for that option as part of the proceedings. Arguments in his favor emphasized that Silver has no prior violent history, cares for an autistic child, and provides for his family, according to the original bond hearing account.
Judge Middleton's decision to release Silver on his own recognizance tracks with Maryland Rule 4-216.1, a 2017 bail reform measure requiring judges to impose the least onerous pretrial conditions necessary for defendants assessed as low risk, per court rule documentation compiled by DigitalCommons@UM Carey Law. Under Maryland Rule 4-216, that release requires strict compliance with future court dates — if Silver commits a new offense or fails to appear, it can trigger immediate arrest and revocation of his release, according to legal reference materials from Westlaw.
Steep Potential Penalties Still Loom
The charges Silver faces carry significant exposure. First-degree assault under Maryland Criminal Law Code § 3-202 is a felony punishable by up to 25 years in prison, covering intentional attempts to cause serious physical injury or assaults committed with a firearm, according to the Desper Law Group. Reckless endangerment under § 3-204 is a misdemeanor but still carries up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, per FindLaw, which notes prosecutors must prove the conduct created a substantial risk of death or serious harm. Unlawful firearm discharge in Maryland may carry fines of $250 to $1,000, according to Okin.
Judge Middleton, appointed to the bench by then-Governor Larry Hogan in 2017 and later elected to a full 15-year term, previously served as president of the Bar Association of Baltimore City and sat on the Maryland State Commission on Criminal Sentencing Policy, according to Ballotpedia and the bar association's own records. She has handled other high-profile violent crime cases recently in the same courthouse: Hoodline reported this week that Middleton sentenced a defendant to 140 years for a fatal shooting after a youth basketball game, well below the 295 years prosecutors had sought.
Silver's case is scheduled to return to Baltimore City Circuit Court on December 1, when he will remain bound by the terms of his recognizance release in the meantime.
