On a summer afternoon in Hyattsville, Maryland, 20-year-old Conrad Cole was walking with two caregivers from the group home where he resided. They were on their way to a nearby basketball court on June 1, 2016, when a car pulled up beside them at the intersection of 69th Place and Greenvale Parkway. A brief and seemingly trivial confrontation occurred between Cole and the occupants of the vehicle, which tragically escalated.
The man in the car, later identified as 28-year-old Roderick
Town, shot Cole following the argument. Cole was struck by gunfire and collapsed in the roadway. He was rushed to a nearby hospital but succumbed to his injuries a short time later. The preliminary investigation indicated that Town and Cole did not know each other prior to this fatal encounter.
In the days following the shooting, the Prince George's County Police Department's Homicide Unit launched an investigation. A crucial piece of information came from the second person in the car with Town, who was reportedly disturbed by the shooting and initially tried to render aid to Cole before fleeing as police arrived. This witness's cooperation was sought by law enforcement to help piece together the events of that tragic afternoon.
Roderick Town of Hyattsville was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, and related charges in connection with Conrad Cole's death. On January 6, 2017, a jury convicted Town of second-degree murder, unlawful possession of a regulated firearm, and use of a firearm in the commission of a crime of violence. He was subsequently sentenced to a total of sixty-five years in prison, with all but forty-five years suspended. Town later appealed his conviction, arguing issues with the trial's cross-examination and jury instructions, but the appeal was ultimately unsuccessful.
