In the News

Browse news coverage about the State’s Attorney’s Office.

Defendant Sentenced to 37 Years for 2023 Attempted Murder

In court July 8, Ward was sentenced to 25 years for attempted murder and 12 years for firearm use in a felony violent crime with the first five years without the possibility of parole. The sentences are slated to run consecutively. Ward was also sentenced to a year for discharging a firearm. The year will run current to the 37 year sentence. The defendant’s sentence for the misdemeanor charge of having a loaded handgun on his person was merged with the other charges.

Defendant to Serve Ten Years for Auto Body Shop Shooting

Estrada accepted the prosecution’s plea offer of 25 years, suspending all but five years, for first-degree assault to run consecutively to 15 years, suspending all but five years without the possibility of parole for firearm use in a felony violent crime. Upon release, Estrada will serve three years of supervised probation, register as a gun offender and be required to stay away from the victims and the incident location.

Man convicted for role in 2022 double homicide in Northwest Baltimore

Datuan Blanchard, 24, faces two life sentences without the possibility of parole at a Sept.12 hearing. He was convicted of two counts of both first- and second-degree murder as well as first-degree assault in the death of 23-year-old Leion Davis Jr. and 24-year-old William Ferebee, according to court records. The two men were found shot to death inside a vehicle in the 4000 block of Wabash Avenue in the East Arlington neighborhood, close to where the street dead-ends in a wooded area, around 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 12, 2022.

Baltimore City councilman misses the mark in state’s attorney’s budget hearing | GUEST COMMENTARY

Rather than focusing on the historic charging and conviction data provided by State’s Attorney Ivan J. Bates and his team, Councilman Kristerfer Burnett used the budgetary bully pulpit to demonstrate his ire and ignorance of the citation docket. Had he bothered to pay attention, the councilman could have discovered how useful citations have proven for past administrations trying to hold offenders accountable for quality-of-life crimes.

Baltimore can’t afford to shortchange anti-violence investments | STAFF COMMENTARY

Across Maryland, local governments are facing tough choices as they finalize their budgets for the coming fiscal year. A statewide mandate to upgrade K-12 public schools — along with a desire not to raise taxes on inflation-weary consumers — is a common lament in counties large and small. But in Baltimore, the stakes may be highest of all. That’s because Mayor Brandon Scott and members of the Baltimore City Council must decide before the month’s end how to allocate limited resources to public safety. Their decision essentially corresponds with the answer to this question: What approach works best when it comes to reducing gun violence in Baltimore?