A man accused of fatally shooting the mother of his unborn child in a Baltimore County parking lot last month will face two murder charges, one in the woman's death and one in the fetus' death, marking the first prosecution under the state's fetal homicide law.
David L. Miller, 24, was indicted on two counts of first-degree murder by a Baltimore County grand jury yesterday in the death of Elizabeth Walters, 24, and her unborn child, Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott D. Shellenberger said.
"It really comes down to intent to kill and some evidence that there was knowledge that the fetus would die," Shellenberger said, adding that he planned to prosecute the case himself.
Miller, who is married to another woman, is accused of shooting Walters, a waitress at a popular Charles Village night spot, and her longtime friend, Heather Lowe, 24, as they sat in a car in the parking lot of the Parkway Crossing shopping center in Hillendale on the morning of June 11.
Lowe survived being shot in the face and told police that Miller was the gunman before being taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center, according to charging documents. Surveillance tapes show Miller's wife's car was in the parking lot at the time of the shooting and cell phone records indicate that Miller and Walters exchanged calls that morning, according to the documents.
Miller surrendered the day after the shooting and was charged by police with one count of first-degree murder in Walters' death.
In addition to the two murder charges, the grand jury yesterday indicted Miller on charges of first-degree assault and attempted murder in Lowe's shooting, as well as two handgun offenses, Shellenberger said.
Miller plans to plead not guilty to the charges, according to his lawyer, James R. Dills.
"We're fairly certain that when all the smoke settles, Mr. Miller is going to be exonerated," Dills said.
Under a law enacted in October 2005, a person who kills a woman who is pregnant with a viable fetus can be charged with a double homicide.
"We received our report from the medical examiner, and included in that report were sufficient facts to lead us to believe that the fetus was viable," Shellenberger said, adding that the length, weight and stage of development indicate that the fetus could have survived outside the womb.
He said the Maryland law has not previously been used in a prosecution.
