On the early morning of November 14, 2019, 22-year-old Ayranna James was killed on the 1900 block of McHenry Street in West Baltimore. Around 2:50 a.m., the sound of about ten gunshots brought police to the scene, where officers found James and another victim, Courtney Richardson, both with gunshot wounds. James was pronounced dead at the scene; Richardson was taken to a trauma center and later died.

Surveillance footage showed a small gray sedan stop, three people exit and walk down an alley, then reappear — two of them opening fire on James and Richardson before fleeing in the same vehicle. Investigators recovered seven 9mm casings and two .40 caliber casings, and linked the killings to a string of armed robberies and carjackings that occurred in the surrounding hours.

Three suspects were identified and arrested. Kiray Walker was convicted of second-degree murder of Ayranna James plus conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and firearm offenses. A juvenile at the time, Devon Bynum pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and received a 20-year sentence. Malik Brooks was convicted by a jury on two counts of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, armed carjacking, armed robbery and related charges; evidence included a coat matching the shooter seen on surveillance. Anyone with information about Ayranna or the events that night is asked to come forward.