In the Shipley Hill neighborhood of Southwest Baltimore, on the evening of October 2, 2024, the life of 20-year-old Tavin Cooper was cut short. Responding to the sound of gunfire in the 2500 block of McHenry Street at approximately 9:49 p.m., Baltimore Police Department officers discovered Cooper with a gunshot wound to his head. He was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition and tragically succumbed to his injuries the following day.
Tavin Cooper was a Black male.
The investigation into the shooting led detectives to identify 33-year-old Dominic Felder as the primary suspect. On October 24, 2024, warrant apprehension detectives located and arrested Felder in the 300 block of South Catherine Street. He was subsequently charged with first-degree murder and related offenses and held without bail at the Central Booking Intake Facility.
Dominic Felder's case proceeded to a jury trial in July 2025. The prosecution's case heavily relied on the testimony of Cooper's cousin, who identified Felder as the shooter. However, the defense cast doubt on the witness's credibility, arguing that his story had changed and that he had offered information to the police in exchange for his own release after being arrested with a firearm shortly after the homicide. The defense attorney presented an alternative theory, showing the jury a photo of another unidentified individual who was seen in the area at the time of the shooting, allegedly holding a firearm. After deliberations, the jury found Dominic Felder not guilty of all charges on July 8, 2025, and he was acquitted.
