Tag Archives: Joppa

EIGHTY YEARS TO SERVE FOR JOPPATOWNE HIGH SCHOOL MURDER

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 14, 2025
Re: State v. Jaylen Rushawn Prince
On Tuesday, October 14, 2025, Jaylen Rushawn Prince was sentenced in the Circuit Court for Harford County before the Honorable Judge Keven Mahoney following his May, 2025 conviction by the jury for the First Degree Murder of Warren Grant and related charges on September 6, 2024 at Joppatowne High School.

In her sentencing presentation to the Court, State’s Attorney Alison M. Healey read ten victim impact statements provided by various family members and friends of the victim. All the statements highlighted the “crushing emotional toll” the murder has had on the family, as well as the “incomprehensible loss” they have suffered, describing the victim as “selfless, loving, kind, and loyal.” Through their statements the victim’s family requested “accountability and justice” for the senseless murder that took Warren Grant’s life.

Ms. Healey argued that Prince is not, and may never be, amendable to treatment, introducing Harford County Public School records highlighting a longstanding history of violence to include dozens of incidents of threats toward teachers, multiple attacks and physical violence towards peers, and continuous verbally abusive behavior. She also introduced two hundred pages of records from the Charles H. Hickey School where the Defendant was held both pending trial and post-trial. These records outlined continued assaultive behaviors sometimes requiring physical restraint and often unprovoked. They also noted numerous occasions of threats and verbal abuse toward teachers, counselors, and staff continuing even following his guilty conviction in this case. A psychological evaluation that was performed on the Defendant by Dr. Witczak, a psychologist with the Department of Mental Health, was also filed with the Court for sentencing purposes, which found Prince to be an “extremely high risk for future violence.” Overall, Ms. Healey argued to the Court that the Defendant continues to be a serious risk to public safety and stated that the message “must be swift and certain” to deter future gun violence in our schools. Due to the Defendant’s age at the time of the offense, the State was unable to seek a sentence of Life without the Possibility of Parole, so instead requested a total sentence of Life suspending all but one hundred (100) years to serve to ensure that Prince would, in fact, remain incarcerated for a significant period of his life.

The Honorable Judge Mahoney stated that the effects of this tragedy are “profound and long lasting.” He also noted that children should be able to go to school and come home at the end of the day without fear of gun violence and that “this should not be an acceptable reality.” Ultimately, he noted that there was no threat toward the defendant by the victim in this case, and that Prince clearly and knowingly brought a loaded firearm to school with the intent to use it. He further highlighted the Defendant’s long and significant history of violence before handing down a sentence of Life plus twenty (20) years, suspending all but eighty (80) years to serve with five years of supervised probation upon release. Because this case involves a crime of violence, Prince will not be eligible for his first parole review until at least half of his sentence is served.

Following the sentencing State’s Attorney Alison M. Healey, commented: “No sentence will ever bring Warren back to his loved ones or make up for the fact that his life was cut short in the most tragic and senseless way. However, today we did our best to seek justice for both him and his family. Through this sentence, we have ensured that Jaylen Prince will no longer be a threat to our community. It is my hope that today will help close the hardest chapter of Warren family’s lives and send the message that gun violence will not be tolerated in our schools, or in our community at all for that matter.”

State’s Attorney Healey also continues to express her sincere appreciation for Assistant State’s Attorney Anthony Baranauskas for his continued assistance as second chair in the case.

MIDDLE RIVER MAN FOUND GUILTY OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE FIRST DEGREE ASSAULT

DATE: December 13, 2024
RE: State v. Timothy Frye Jr.

On Wednesday, December 11, 2024, Timothy Frye Jr. was found guilty of First-Degree Assault and Second-Degree Assault following a four-day jury trial before the Honorable Paul Ishak in the Circuit Court for Harford County.

Evidence presented in trial proved that on November 14, 2023, at approximately 8:09 AM, Deputy First Class Tatum and Deputy First Class Harvell responded to a residence on Plaza Circle in Joppa in reference to a 911 hang up. Dispatch advised the deputies that the caller called them back and stated that there was no emergency, and nobody needed to come to the previously provided address, but during that second call, dispatch could hear an infant crying in the background, and the caller sounded extremely out of breath.

Upon arrival, Deputies met with the victim, who was holding her one-year-old daughter and crying. The victim also had multiple scratches under her left eye, a swollen lip, bruising and scratches around her neck, and bruising and scratches on her left arm. It was later discovered that the victim had bruising on her left foot as well. Upon speaking to the victim, she advised that she had gotten into an argument with her boyfriend, Timothy Frye, Jr., over a miscommunication about a question Frye had asked her. The victim further explained that during the argument, Frye had forcefully grabbed her, thrown her into a wall, tried to pull her teeth out of her mouth, punched her in the face, stomped on her foot, and strangled her to the point where she felt like she could not breathe. The victim told the deputies that she tried to call 911 for help, but Frye forced her to hang up and threatened to kill her if she did not call back and tell 911 that police did not need to come. After realizing police were likely coming, Frye fled the residence, leaving the victim and their one-year-old daughter behind.

Following the jury’s guilty verdict, Frye was returned to the Harford County Detention Center where he will await sentencing on February 7, 2025. Frye also remains on probation for an unrelated Domestic Second-Degree Assault in Baltimore County.

Following the conviction, State’s Attorney Alison M. Healey issued the following comment: “As a long-time domestic violence prosecutor, these cases are always ones close to my heart. Every victim and child should feel safe in their own homes and not be subjected to violence and abuse at the hands of those who claim to love them. I’m incredibly proud of the amazing effort put forth by Assistant State’s Attorney Logan Hayes to ensure that this victim and her child no longer must be subjected to any type of violence at the hands of this defendant. It is abundantly clear that the convictions in this case will aid in the prevention of future danger to the victim in this case.”

State’s Attorney Healey further expressed her gratitude to Harford County Sheriff’s Office Detective DeFazio, Deputy First Class Tatum, and Deputy First Class Harvell for their investigation and testimony leading to this conviction.