The defense attorneys of the two men indicted on murder charges in the homicide of former Baltimore Councilman Ken Harris are preparing to challenge the warrants police used to seize their clients’ DNA.
A Baltimore grand jury indicted Charles Y. McGaney, 19, of the 1600 block of Lochwood Road in Baltimore, and Gary A. Collins, 20, of the 2600 block of Ivy Place in Parkville, on charges of first-degree murder, assault, robbery and handgun charges related to Harris’ death, prosecutors said Tuesday.
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Collins’ defense attorney Jan Bledsoe declined to comment on the indictment, saying she had not yet seen a copy of the court documents. Maureen Rowland, McGaney’s attorney, also said she didn’t want to comment on the case.
But earlier, Bledsoe had questioned how police obtained her client’s DNA, which detectives said is key to their case, and both lawyers said they are expected to challenge the evidence in motions hearings.
“Gary Anthony Collins was positively identified through photographic array and positively linked by his DNA to the physical evidence recovered by police,” Baltimore homicide detective Donald Diehl wrote in charging documents.
According to a law enforcement source, police obtained a warrant for Collins’ DNA after an informant identified Collins by his “unusual gait to his walk” seen on a surveillance video.
Prosecutors expect attorneys for McGaney and Collins to challenge the constitutionality of those warrants before trial.
According to charging documents, robbers “ambushed” Harris as he stood in front of the Haven Lounge with owner Keith Covington, 54. Harris attempted to run to his car, but was shot in his back through the driver’s window as he tried to get in his car, police said.
Inside the lounge, the suspects stole a woman’s pocketbook, Covington’s wallet containing $160, and $1,375 from a safe, police said. A trail of physical evidence led detectives to an escape route, where they recovered Covington’s wallet and a skeleton mask worn by a suspect during the murder, charging documents state.
Police said they found “several other pieces of evidence from which laboratory technicians able to develop DNA profiles.”
During their investigation, police said they located confidential witnesses who identified Collins and McGaney as the men caught on surveillance video walking in the shopping center — with McGaney carrying the skeleton mask — in the moments before the shooting.
Those witnesses will remain anonymous until trial, police said.
A Jan. 8 arraignment is planned in Baltimore Circuit Court.
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