Wicomico County, MD – On March 23, 2023, the Hon. K. Beckstead, Chief Judge of the Circuit Court for Wicomico County, sentenced Damon Hall, aged 26, of Cambridge, Maryland, to two consecutive terms of Life Without Possibility of Parole on two counts of First-Degree Murder, plus an additional consecutive term of ten years without parole on firearms charges.
On November 30, 2022, after a three-day jury trial presided over by Judge Beckstead, Hall was convicted of the double homicide in Salisbury, which occurred on October 12, 2021.
In the early afternoon hours of October 12, 2021, Hall drove from his home in Cambridge to the home of the victims, Emmanuel Jones, aged 42, and Jones’ aunt, Patrice Trader, aged 51, at 315 Martin Street in Salisbury, Maryland.
After first reconnoitering the area, Damon Hall returned to the home approximately 90 minutes later and shot both Mr. Jones and Ms. Trader in the head. Mr. Jones was pronounced dead at Tidal Health Peninsula Regional Medical Center later that same day. Ms. Trader succumbed to her wound in March 2022, some five months later.
Wicomico County State’s Attorney (SA) Jamie Dykes said, “Once again, senseless gun violence in our County has wreaked havoc on the innocent and, once again, the dedication of our law enforcement agencies has brought about justice for us all. We are grateful for their efforts, for the efforts of the citizen jurors who decided this case, and for the sentence handed down by the Court.”
State’s Attorney Dykes commended Det. K. Allen of the Maryland State Police Homicide Unit, the lead investigator on the case, as well as Detectives J. Hicks, D. Underwood, and C. Robinson of the Salisbury Police Department, for their work in the investigation. SA Dykes also commended Senior Assistant State’s Attorneys D. Scott Messersmith and Patrizia Coletta, who prosecuted the case.