BALTIMORE — – Mausean Carter was convicted of first-degree murder for the killing of Martell Harris. He was also convicted of four separate counts of attempted second degree murder, use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence and a prohibited person in possession of a handgun. In February, Carter was separately convicted of two counts of attempted first degree murder and one count of attempted second degree murder, use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence and a prohibited person in possession of a handgun for an incident that occurred on December 15, 2017.
Assistant State’s Attorney Traci Robinson prosecuted Carter for the killing of Martell Harris.
On December 14, 2017, at approximately 9:30 am, officers responded to a report of a non-fatal shooting in the 4400 block of Reisterstown Road. Upon their arrival, officers found a male victim suffering from a gunshot wound to his upper left arm. The victim indicated he had been at a food market in the 2700 block of West Coldspring Avenue when he was shot. Six .40 caliber shell casings and one projectile were later found at the scene of the incident.
Later that day, at approximately 2:55 pm, officers responded to 4500 block of Reisterstown Road for a separate shooting. The victim, identified as Martell Harris, was lying on the sidewalk suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, one to the head and the other to his neck. Mr. Harris later was transported to Sinai Hospital and died as a result of his injuries. Officers found five .40 caliber shell casings at the scene of this shooting.
Through investigation, a witness was identified and she shared with detectives she was walking about 20-30 feet behind Martell Harris when he crossed St. Ambrose Avenue. She observed a gray four-door sedan stop in the middle of the road. The driver held out a black handgun from the driver’s window and began to fire at the victim. The same witness then saw the vehicle flee and speed off towards West Coldspring Avenue.
Detectives obtained surveillance video from a business in the 4400 block of Reisterstown Road which showed a gray sedan speed through the parking lot moments after the shooting. The vehicle matched the description of the same vehicle that a BPD alert identified in a non-fatal shooting which occurred on December 8, 2017 in the 2500 block of Edmondson Avenue.
On the afternoon of December 14, 2017 at approximately 4:50 pm, officers responded to another report of a shooting at a store located in the 900 block Poplar Grove Street. Officers found Ali Ouedraogo lying face down in the back of the store and were told the victim was saying his evening prayers when he was shot. Ouedraogo died from the single gunshot wound to his head. Officers were also advised that two non-fatal victims, who had been in the store, went to the hospital suffering from gunshot wounds to their lower extremities. Eleven 7.62x39mm casings were recovered from the scene of this incident.
Camera footage showed a gray four-door sedan with tinted windows and a sunroof pull up in front of the store. The driver discharged what appeared to be an assault style weapon from the driver’s side window multiple times. This vehicle also matched the same vehicle description from the non-fatal shooting alert sent out by BPD on December 8th.
On December 15, 2017 at approximately 11:07 am, a patrol officer stopped a four-door silver sedan matching the description of the vehicle involved in the December 8thnon-fatal shooting. The officer noted the vehicle had dark tinted windows, custom black rims, and a sunroof. The lone occupant in the car was the defendant, Mausean Carter. The officer contacted City Wide Shootings to confirm if this was the vehicle involved in the December 8th shooting. The officer then asked Carter to exit the vehicle at which time the defendant sped off starting a car chase which lasted 50 minutes and ended at the intersection of Gwynn Falls and Reisterstown road. During the course of the car chase, Carter fired randomly at officers and citizens, injuring 3 different victims.
Located inside the car was a 7.62x39mm Bulgarian 95 rifle (SLR) and a .40 caliber Hi Point Smith & Wesson handgun. Some of the eleven .7.62x39mm casings recovered from the incident that occurred in the 900 block of Poplar Grove Street matched the 7.62x39mm Bulgarian SLR 95 recovered from the vehicle being driven by Mausean Carter. Casings from both the 2700 block of West Coldspring Lane and the 4500 block of Reisterstown Road were matched to the .40 caliber Hi Point Smith & Wesson handgun. A search warrant was obtained for the defendant’s home and both 7.62x39mm ammunition and .40 caliber ammunition were recovered.
“This defendant is the worst kind of criminal, with the audacity to and arrogance to victimize so many without any fear of consequences,” said State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby. “I applaud the fine work of ASA Robinson, the BPD and the community for coming together and ensuring this individual was held fully accountable for this horrific crime spree.”
Carter’s sentencing is scheduled for August 16, 2019.
