Johnny Small

A dispute on a Friday afternoon in Baltimore escalated into a fatal shooting that claimed the life of Johnny Small, a 55-year-old man. On March 1, 2024, at approximately 1:05 p.m., police officers responded to a call about a shooting on the 5400 block of Sinclair Lane. Upon arrival, they found Small suffering from a gunshot wound. He was rushed to a local hospital, but medical personnel were unable to save him, and he was pronounced deceased.

Investigators with the Baltimore Police Department soon determined that the shooting had not occurred where Small was found. Their investigation led them to the 5300 block of Frankford Avenue, where they learned that Small had been shot following a dispute. Within days, detectives identified a suspect in the killing.

On March 11, 2024, officers from the Foxtrot, Northeast, and Southwest District Action Teams located and arrested 23-year-old Derek Steele III of Baltimore. The arrest was made on the 1700 block of West Baltimore Street. Steele was transported to the Central Booking Intake Facility, where he was charged with first-degree murder and held without bail.

Steele was later charged with firearm use in a felony violent crime, firearm possession with a felony conviction, and having a handgun on his person. During a court hearing on August 9, 2024, the prosecution offered Steele a plea agreement for the murder and firearm use charges. The deal proposed a sentence of life in prison, with all but 50 years suspended, to be followed by five years of supervised probation. Steele’s defense attorney stated that they were unable to accept or reject the plea offer at that time due to issues with evidence disclosure. As of August 2024, a four-day trial has been scheduled to begin on November 22, 2024.