Holly MatkinBaltimore, MD – A Baltimore man’s multi-day shooting rampage was fueled by his desire to single-handedly eradicate drug dealers from his neighborhood, according to prosecutors.
Mausean Carter, 31, faces two murder charges, 10 attempted murder charges, and a litany of weapons-related offenses due to the “one-man crime wave” he brought to the city in December of 2017, Assistant State’s Attorney Traci Robinson said, according to The Baltimore Sun.
Carter’s trial began in Baltimore Circuit Court this week.
“You may ask yourself, why? Why did this happen?” Robinson told the jury. “He was sick of the drug dealers and he was single-handedly going to address the problem.”
“His mission was essentially to kill the drug dealers,” she said.
But it wasn’t only criminals who were attacked during Carter’s days-long rampage.
His tirade began on Dec. 8, 2017, when he fired at a minivan that cut off his silver Lexus in traffic, The Baltimore Sun reported.
Police began searching for the vehicle, but did not initially locate it.
One week later, Carter allegedly carried out a drive-by shooting on Reisterstown Road, killing 21-year-old Martrell Harris.
A witness said she was walking behind Harris when she saw the muzzle flash coming from a passing Lexus.
According to investigators, Carter later confessed to shooting Harris in the face and head, and said that Harris had disrespected his girlfriend.
“He was upset Mr. Harris and some of his associates were harassing him and his girlfriend,” Baltimore Police Detective Steve McDonnell testified. “He mentioned they slapped her in the butt or something to that effect.”
Carter is also accused of having committed multiple other drive-by shootings at other locations.
According to court documents, he allegedly fired a .40-caliber handgun at a group of men on West Cold Spring Lane.
In a separate incident, he shot a New York Fried Chicken restaurant owner in the leg with a high-powered rifle as the owner was standing outside, waiting for a bread delivery, police said.
Bullets riddled the building’s walls, windows, and doors.
During another incident, he allegedly opened fire on a couple and their handyman as they were driving to Home Depot, Robinson told the jury.
The handyman was struck in the head, and now suffers seizures and permanent disabilities.
Surveillance footage from the O’s Super Mart showed Carter’s Lexus passing by the store in yet another attack, prosecutors said.
Two men inside the store were wounded, and a cashier was fatally shot in the head.
“The defendant said that the fatal victim was collateral damage,” Baltimore Detective Richard Moore testified.
On Dec. 15, an officer spotted Carter’s vehicle and pulled him over, WJZ reported.
He initially cooperated with the officer, and handed him a doctor’s note to justify the dark tint on his windows.
Bodycam footage showed the officer as he conferred with another officer at the scene.
He noted that the letter Carter provided him was “homemade,” and that it pertained to an entirely different vehicle.
“The whole car reeks of weed,” the officer added.
When he asked Carter to get out of the vehicle, the wanted gunman sped away instead.
During the ensuing 45-minute high-speed pursuit through West Baltimore, Carter allegedly fired at police and passing vehicles, shattering a window that sent shards of glass into a bystander’s eye, The Baltimore Sun reported.
Carter was ultimately arrested in the 1800-block of Gwynns Falls Parkway, after his girlfriend convinced him to slow his Lexus near the Mondawmin Mall, WJZ reported.
She then ran to his car and pulled him out of it, at which point police were able to take him into custody.
Officers recovered a handgun and a rifle from inside the Lexus, according to WJZ.
The serial number on at least one of the weapons had been scratched off, police said.
Although Carter’s family and attorney claimed he was suffering from mental illness, he has since been cleared to stand trial following a court-ordered psychological evaluation, The Baltimore Sun reported.
His criminal history dates back to 2004, and includes arrests for drugs, traffic, and weapons offenses, according to WJZ.
Carter’s murder trial is expected to last well into next week, WBAL reported.
If convicted, he faces the possibility of multiple life sentences.