Parent of Accused Juvenile Offender Pleads Guilty to Concealing Evidence

Baltimore, Md. (September 11, 2026) – Today, the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office announced that Defendant Yolanda Wilkes pleaded guilty to Accessory after the Fact for Assault in the First Degree and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor. She was sentenced to three years, suspending all but time served, 150 community service hours, parenting classes, and three years of probation. Assistant State’s Attorneys Paul Crowley and Kirstin Riddle prosecuted this case.

“The defendant’s attempt to cover up her daughter’s actions only compounded the harm caused by this crime and undermined the pursuit of justice,” said State’s Attorney Ivan J. Bates. “Parents have a responsibility to protect and guide their children, not to become accomplices to their wrongdoing. When a parent chooses to interfere with the justice system, they must be held accountable. No one is above the law, and our office will continue to pursue accountability for anyone who attempts to obstruct justice.”

Following an investigation by police, three juveniles were charged for an alleged aggravated assault that occurred on February 15, 2026, at the 800 block of W. Lombard Street, which resulted in an officer discharging his weapon. During the course of that investigation, the mother of one of the arrested juveniles, Defendant Yolanda Wilkes, was interviewed by police.

Ms. Wilkes stated that she was awakened a little after midnight on February 15, 2026, by her daughter’s friend, who brought her home. Her daughter was bleeding from her hand and told her mother that she messed up and thought she ‘caught a body.’ Her daughter stated that she hit a police officer and that her friend was driving and also made her drive. Her daughter stated that she was making a U-turn and that she hit parked cars. She also stated that the police shot at her. Ms. Wilkes mentioned that her daughter was wearing a yellow and black jacket during the incident, which she threw away because she could not get the blood stain off of it. Ms. Wilkes also stated that while she was doing laundry, she recovered a fired projectile from the coat. She said she gave that projectile to her daughter’s father, who was supposed to turn it over to the police.

Ms. Wilkes gave police photos that she captured of her daughter’s injured arm, as well as photos of the projectile and jacket. Detectives made several attempts to contact the juvenile’s father to recover the fired projectile. The father stated that he didn’t know what the police were referring to and was uncooperative. Officers went to the father’s address, but the location appeared to be a vacant home.

Ms. Wilkes stated that she put her daughter’s blood-stained coat in a blue dumpster in the church parking lot located at the rear of her home because she could not get the blood stain off of it. On February 18, 2026, officers responded to the church parking lot and found mail bearing the Defendant's name next to the dumpster, along with a broken tablet, indicating that someone had removed the jacket from the dumpster. They never recovered the coat.

Ms. Wilkes took her daughter to Sinai Hospital for treatment. At the hospital, Ms. Wilkes told medical staff that her daughter fell from a scooter.