Tristan Brian Jackson, who faces 55 charges related to the July mass shooting at the Brooklyn Day block party that killed two and wounded 28 others, was denied bail by a district court judge on Monday.
Baltimore District Court Judge Catherine Chen said that Jackson posed a “reasonable likelihood of danger to the community.”
Jackson, 18 years-old, appeared before the court virtually Monday afternoon where he listened solemnly as Chen read out the 55 charges. Those range from seven counts of conspiracy to commit first degree murder, seven counts of attempted murder, reckless endangerment and other charges. Many of those come with sentences ranging from decades to life in prison.
Jackson is being represented by Lauren Dollar and Amanda Savage from the Office of the Public Defender. Dollar stressed that Jackson has received treatment for PTSD, is currently working part-time, and that he is two credits away from high-school graduation. She said that Jackson is also an expectant father.
Chen described Jackson as having a “limited” record.
Jackson was arrested earlier this spring when he was still a minor. According to previous reporting, police recovered a Glock 43x9 mm pistol with an extended magazine off of Jackson following a tip that he had brought a gun into Mervo High School. Those documents are currently unavailable “because they were filed with a habeas corpus petition to review his no-bail status following his arrest”, as reported by The Baltimore Banner.
In Monday’s bail review Judge Chen recognized that Jackson is young and with that “come other issues” but ultimately denied bail on the grounds that evidence, including alleged video of Jackson shooting at fleeing individuals, showed he posed a “reasonable likelihood of danger to the community.” Jackson’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for September.
Aaliyah Gonzalez, 18, and Kylis Fagbemi were both killed in the Brooklyn Day shooting which took place at Gretna Court in the Brooklyn Homes housing project.
Correction 8/21/2023: An earlier version of this story stated that Assistant Public Defender Dollar described Jackson as having a "limited" record. That assessment was made by Judge Chen.