Prosecution rests, jury deliberations to begin in trial of murdered Naval Academy mother
BALTIMORE -- The jury is now deliberating in the case of a Naval Academy mom who was struck and killed by a stray bullet.
Michelle Cummings was shot and killed in June of 2021 as she spent an evening on the patio of an Annapolis hotel with her husband and friends.
Cummings was in Annapolis with her husband, Leonard Cummings III, for their son's induction to the Naval Academy when prosecutors say she was struck and killed by a stray bullet.
Angelo Harrod faces several charges in the case, including first and second degree murder.
After two weeks of trial, the defense has rested in the case. The duty inside the Annapolis courthouse has now shifted from the lawyers to the jurors who will consider whether the murder of Cummings was pre-meditated.
Over a period of eight days, prosecutors have presented evidence that they say proves Harrod was the one who pulled the trigger from an Annapolis parking lot while aiming for two people—but then a stray bullet struck Cummings.
There were video images that showed a suspect in a "distinctive" sweatshirt. An expert witness testified that the sweatshirt had gun residue and Harrod's DNA on it.
There was a witness who reluctantly testified that Harrod was in the neighborhood on the night of the shooting.
Messages and jailhouse calls were also presented to the jury. The prosecution said Harrod was trying to intimidate witnesses.
But a murder weapon was never found, and Harrod's defense attorney challenged witness after witness.
The defense attorney's line of questioning forced an expert witness to admit that gun residue on clothing isn't proof that any particular person shot a gun, because it could have been someone else.
Another witness also admitted to the defense attorney and the court that shell casings—at least eight of them—could have been on the crime scene from a previous shooting.
The defense attorney also pointed out that the distinctive looking sweat shirt seen on video and presented as evidence in trial was popular around town, a reference that the suspected shooter could have been someone else.
During jury instructions, the judge told the jury that it's now up to them to determine if prosecutors proved the case beyond a reasonable doubt. The jury's decision must be unanimous.
Deliberations began shortly before 5 p.m. Monday and will resume on Tuesday morning at 9 a.m.
