James Johnny Chase

A bright life was extinguished in the spring of 2019 when James Johnny Chase III, a 21-year-old Black man, was killed in Baltimore, Maryland. Known to some of his friends as "2 Jc" or "2 Jroc," his death on Saturday, May 18, 2019, left a void in the lives of those who knew and loved him. The details of his life, his passions, and the family that mourned him have remained private, shielded from the public narrative that has been defined by the tragic circumstances of his final day.

The incident that claimed James’s life unfolded in the Sandtown-Winchester neighborhood of West Baltimore. Police were called to the 1300 block of Woodyear Street for a report of a shooting. When officers arrived, they found James suffering from gunshot wounds. The specific details of what led to the violence on that Saturday have not been released by authorities. It was a weekend marked by violence in the city, with news reports indicating that multiple people were shot, and two, including James, were killed between Friday night and Sunday morning.

The Baltimore Police Department immediately opened a homicide investigation into James's death. Detectives from the homicide unit were assigned to the case, tasked with canvassing the neighborhood for witnesses and searching for any available surveillance footage that might have captured the events leading up to the shooting or the individuals responsible. Despite their efforts, the investigation has been met with challenges, and information has been scarce.

In the years that have passed since James's murder, there has been little public movement in the case. No suspects have been named, no arrests have been made, and the motive behind the shooting remains unknown. For the family and friends of James, the lack of answers and resolution has only compounded their grief. The silence in the case leaves them in a painful state of limbo, unable to find closure or see justice served for their loved one.

The community of West Baltimore, a historic area with a rich cultural past, has long contended with the realities of urban violence. The year 2019 was a particularly difficult one for the city, with a high number of homicides that left many families shattered. Each unsolved case, like that of James Johnny Chase III, represents not just a statistic but a personal tragedy with far-reaching impacts on relatives, friends, and the neighborhood as a whole.

As of November 2026, the investigation into the murder of James Johnny Chase III remains open but inactive. The Baltimore Police Department continues to ask for the public's help. They urge anyone with information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, to come forward. The hope is that a new lead might emerge, providing the breakthrough needed to finally bring those responsible for James's death to justice and offer some measure of peace to those he left behind.