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Judge denies request for mistrial in Baltimore squeegee worker murder case, deliberation to continue
Jurors in the case sent a note to the judge Tuesday that they are having trouble coming to a unanimous verdict and asked what would happen if the case ended in a mistrial.
www.cbsnews.com
This story made national headlines when it happened.
A little background:
There are countless articles littering search results over the years regarding “squeegee boys” robbing, carjacking, vandalizing, assaulting, and even shooting/being shot over the last several years.
It resulted in a city-wide “squeegee ban”, meaning that people caught soliciting window “cleaning” services would be warned, then cited and fined, and then forced to enter a diversion program that offers job placement from city employers and city contractors (DPW, utility services, etc.).
The backlash to the ban resulted in an expansion of that program, in some instances PAYING people to not squeegee.
Timothy Reynolds was driving in the downtown area one afternoon where he was solicited by squeegee boys, mostly ages 10-16. He refused service, and waved them off as evident by surveillance footage. The kids began to vandalize his vehicle and attempt to bust his window. He exited his vehicle with a baseball bat, and approached the group, at which point a 14 year old boy retrieved a firearm from his backpack, discharged 1 round dropping Timothy, followed by 4-5 more rounds discharged after he was immobile.
After the shooting, the kids fled the scene and a multi-day manhunt ensued, eventually leading to the suspect’s arrest.
There was a debate leading up to the trial as to whether or not he should be allowed to be tried with self-defense as the reason. Because he was a minor with a prior record, and because it was a fatality, they allowed the prosecution to move forward with murder charges and denied the defense’s right to plead self-defense… since he should have never been in possession of a firearm to begin with, not because a squeegee ban was in effect and solicitation is illegal.
The defendant’s representation has attempted to derail the trial every step of the way, and this is the latest instance.
I’m posting this now because there is talk that an unfavorable verdict will result in “consequences” in the streets, and it gets spicy when there are riots here.