In the late hours of a Thursday night in Pocomoke City, Maryland, a sequence of events unfolded that would end the life of 23-year-old Deontre' L. Bailey. On the evening of April 20, 2017, a gathering on the front porch of a home in the 100-block of Fourth Street took a fatal turn. Bailey was present with several other individuals when an argument broke out.
The dispute reportedly began when Bailey threw a bottle, striking 26-year-old Darryl K. Wise Jr. in the upper torso.
The verbal altercation quickly escalated, culminating in Wise allegedly shooting Bailey with a handgun. After the shooting, Wise fled the scene. Emergency services were called, and police arrived to find Bailey lying in the street with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to his upper torso. He was rushed to Peninsula Regional Medical Center in Salisbury, where he was pronounced dead later that night.
The Maryland State Police Homicide Unit took over the investigation. Following witness accounts and an initial investigation, an arrest warrant was issued for Darryl K. Wise Jr., also a resident of Pocomoke City. The charges against him included first and second-degree murder, reckless endangerment, first and second-degree assault, and handgun violations.
In the early morning hours of the following day, the Maryland State Apprehension Team located and arrested Wise without incident. He was taken into custody to await his initial appearance before a court commissioner. The case was later transferred to the Worcester County Circuit Court, where Wise was scheduled to face a jury trial. The charges he faced carried the potential for a life sentence.
