Jaylen Prince is a teen killer from Maryland who was convicted of the murder of Warren Grant inside of a school bathroom
According to court documents Jaylen Prince would bring a loaded gun to school and was involved in an argument with Warren Grant inside of Joppatowne High School bathroom that ended with Warren being fatally shot
Jaylen Prince would testify that he did not fire the gun and mean to shoot Warren Grant however a cellphone would catch Prince threatening Grant multiple times before firing the fatal shot
Jaylen Prince who is now sixteen years old faces sentencing at a later date
Jaylen Prince Case
A jury has found Jaylen Prince guilty of first-degree murder in the Joppatowne High School shooting death of a fellow student.
Officials announced Thursday that Prince has been found guilty of shooting Warren Grant, 15, during an argument inside a boy’s bathroom in Joppatowne High School on September 6, 2024.
On Wednesday, Prince took the stand as the Defense’s final witness.
In court, Prince admitted he purchased the gun and ammunition, and weeks later, on September 6 took the weapon to Joppatowne High School in his book bag.
Prince confirmed he and Warren Grant got into an argument inside the bathroom concerning a girl.
Prince testified he pulled out the gun because he was surrounded and afraid he was going to get jumped.
When cross-questioned by the State, Prince responded, “No, I did not kill him. I didn’t fire the gun. It accidentally went off.”
The State played a cell phone video from inside the bathroom and pointed out that Prince can be heard threatening to kill Grant at least three times before a single gunshot is heard.
Prosecutors also again played footage from a nearby home’s ring camera following the shooting, where earlier this week, a detective testified he believed it captured Prince on the phone instructing someone to “toss” the gun.
During Prince’s testimony, the teen denied saying that, and told the State he threw the gun before he passed that house, when walking towards Joppatowne Farm Road.
To date, the murder weapon has never been found.
Last week, a Judge denied the Defense’s motion to have Prince acquitted of that charge. Prince’s attorney argued prosecutors had failed to prove Grant’s murder was premeditated.
On Wednesday, the Judge sent the jury home early and explained jury instructions had yet to be finalized.
On Thursday, the jury reached a verdict around 5:00 p.m.
Jaylen Prince News
The jury in the Joppatowne High School shooting trial reached a verdict Thursday.
Jaylen Prince, 16, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Warren Grant, 15, in a school bathroom on Sept. 6, 2024.
After closing arguments Thursday, the jury began deliberating shortly after 2 p.m. on nine criminal counts. There were three new charges added since his arrest in September. The new charges are gun offenses, including having a handgun on public school property.
The jury reached a verdict after a little more than three hours of deliberation by the time it was announced around 5:15 p.m. that a verdict had been reached.
State: Prince was the aggressor
In her closing argument, Harford County State’s Attorney Alison Healey called Prince the aggressor leading up to Grant’s killing.
“The defendant is the aggressor at each and every stage of this confrontation. He raises the level every single time,” Healey said. “This isn’t an accident. (Jaylen Prince) cocked the gun and it went off three seconds later. He made a choice. He chose violence.”
Healey then said Prince chose concealment and flight.
“He does not call 911. He does not tell an adult. He goes past all the teachers, he skips down the hallway,” Healey said.
In reference to surveillance video the jury saw on May 22, Healey told the jury: “You saw it for yourself: It’s not fear, not panic, not sprinting — skipping. He’s out. That’s what you do when you commit a crime. Flee the scene, dump the gun, hide in a stairwell and wait for your Uber.”
The prosecutor told the jury to take all the evidence and think “big picture,” using common sense, saying the only conclusion possible is to find Prince guilty of first-degree murder.
Defense blames victim, claims self-defense
Defense attorney Staci Pipkin offered her closing argument by blaming the victim.
That’s not what happened. It just isn’t,” Pipkin said following the state’s closing argument. “Warren started the flight, backed Jaylen into a corner, pushed him, and the gun was able to go off one time.”
Pipkin said Prince “freaks out, throws the gun in (his) backpack and runs.”
“We’re saying he didn’t do anything. But if you don’t buy that, even if he did do it, it was self-defense because he was backed into a corner and surrounded and those are mitigating circumstances.”
On the four gun counts, the defense said Prince owns that.
“Jaylen is a child not a murderer. Find him guilty on the handgun counts; he owns that, he admits he did that,” Pipkin said.
Prince testified on Wednesday that he bought a ghost gun off the street and carried it around because he was scared. He testified that he put six bullets in the gun, put it in his backpack and brought it to school.
Prince’s own testimony fell apart in cross
During testimony, Prince called Grant the aggressor during their interaction in a school bathroom. Prince denied firing the fatal shot.
But Jaylen Prince ended up contradicting himself during cross-examination, and he also told the jury some of his mother’s testimony on Tuesday was not true. Prince’s mother testified that she was the one who told Prince of Grant’s death during a private moment in the sheriff’s interrogation room and that Prince started shaking and crying.
Prince on Wednesday said that’s not true, saying it was a detective who broke the news to him and that he did not cry or shake on the body-worn camera video played in court. Prince was the last witness for the defense, which rested its case Wednesday afternoon.
On Tuesday, the prosecution rested its case after having called witnesses in an effort to prove premeditation. A detective testified that she found a box of 9 mm ammunition hidden under Jaylen Prince’s mattress.
Heather Marsh, a digital forensics expert with the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, said data extracted from Prince’s phone included a mid-August text message string with a contact named “babyface” that detailed arrangements to purchase a 9 mm ghost gun, a $700 Cash App transaction to pay for it and photos of the gun.