Devin Wilson, 18, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter last week in the fatal shooting of his 8-year-old brother, Dylan King, in Baltimore. Wilson was sentenced to 10 years in prison with four years suspended, plus another five years of probation, according to court documents.
On Dec. 30, 2022, Western District police responded to the 2100 block of Presbury Street in the Easterwood neighborhood for a report of a shooting.
Officers were led to a home in the middle of the block, where they found Dylan King upstairs.
When the officer walked into the bedroom, Wilson was holding a shotgun. The officer was able to talk Wilson into putting down the weapon and leaving the bedroom.
Wilson was taken into custody while Dylan was taken to Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, where he was later pronounced dead, according to charging documents.
After investigation and interviews, investigators found Wilson had been placed in charge of watching his four younger siblings, including Dylan.
Wilson had called Marlena Cook, his mother, and told her to come home since his brother was shot. When Wilson’s stepfather arrived, Wilson told him that Dylan accidentally shot himself, according to charging papers.
However, investigators found that the firearm, a long-barreled shotgun, was fired from a greater distance than a self-inflicted gunshot would have been, according to charging documents. After an autopsy was completed, it showed Dylan had been shot one time to the back, head and shoulders, and there wasn’t any gunpowder on his body. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined his death was a homicide by a single gunshot wound.
Wilson had recently expressed interest in shotguns to his parents, according to charging documents. Due to his budding interest in firearms, his parents took Wilson to an indoor gun range for his 18th birthday.
Investigators were told that shortly after going to the gun range, both parents were aware that Wilson had purchased the shotgun after having sold/traded a puppy for it. The purchase of the firearm isn’t considered illegal since Wilson had turned 18 years old and didn’t have a criminal background.
Wilson, who was originally arrested for second degree murder, decided to opt out of a jury trial by entering a guilty plea for an involuntary manslaughter charge. In addition to his prison sentence, Wilson will have to complete mental health treatment.
Defense attorney Brian Murphy and prosecutor Kurt Bjorkland could not immediately be reached for comment.
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