Several charges against the 22-year-old accused of firing 21 shots into a crowded Columbia Halloween party — killing one young man and paralyzing another — have been dismissed.

On Dec. 1, Howard County District Court Judge Pamila Brown dismissed the counts related to the shooting and paralyzing of Nathaniel Quick, 22, of Columbia.

Brown found during a preliminary hearing that no probable cause existed for police to accuse Devon Dixon, 22, of Elkridge, of shooting the bullets that left Quick paralyzed, though the judge found that probable cause did exist for police to accuse Dixon of shooting and killing another partygoer, Aaron Brice, 19, of Silver Spring, according to prosecutors.

“The judge decided there was no probable cause” in Quick’s case, Howard County Assistant State’s Attorney Kim Oldham said.

The judge said police produced evidence from witnesses who saw Dixon shoot Brice outside the $1.6 million house in the 11500 block of Manorstone Lane, in Harper’s Choice, but that no such witnesses were produced who saw Dixon shoot Quick, an old friend of Dixon’s who collapsed in the basement of the house in what police say was an inadvertent shooting caused by a ricocheting bullet from Dixon’s gun.

Brown dismissed charges against Dixon associated with Quick’s injuries — attempted first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder and first-degree assault. However, Dixon remains charged with first-degree murder and assault charges related to Brice’s death.

Dixon’s attorney Tony Garcia said he argued for dismissal of the charges because he felt the police department’s statement of charges provided little evidence linking his client to Quick’s injuries.

“There was almost nothing mentioned about Mr. Quick,” Garcia said of the statement of charges presented in court. “My interest isn’t to grandstand or punish the state’s attorney’s office. My client’s life is on the line. To take the bare minimalist approach certainly doesn’t speak highly of how they value this person that was killed. I don’t believe it’s anyone’s fault, per se. I believe it’s the state as a whole. When you don’t even produce crumbs, you can’t have us deduce there was once a sandwich.”

But Howard County State’s Attorney Dario Broccolino said his office could ask the grand jury to charge Dixon again with the dismissed counts.

“The police are continuing to investigate,” he said. “If sufficient evidence develops, then we can take it to the grand jury and ask them for an indictment. I respect the judge’s decision. If the judge says we need more evidence, we need more evidence. We’re not going to sit here and argue with the judge.”

Celestine Howard, Quick’s grandmother, said she hadn’t heard about the dismissed charges and didn’t plan to attend Dixon’s trial.

“It doesn’t matter who shot him. He’s still paralyzed,” she said. “It’s a full-time job just taking care of him. ... The bullet is still there. He’ll never walk again, unless there’s a miracle. We thank God he’s still alive.”
 
Howard County Police Chief William McMahon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Accused indicted on drug charges 

Dixon also has been indicted in a separate case. After the Halloween night shooting, which occurred in the early morning hours of Nov. 1, Howard County police served a search warrant later that day at Dixon’s Elkridge residence, where they discovered evidence of gun and drug crimes, according to court documents.

A Howard County grand jury indicted Dixon Nov. 24 on charges of possession with the intent to distribute drugs, possession of marijuana, and use of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

The charges come only months after Dixon had been released early from prison after serving a portion of a three-year sentence for illegal gun possession. His criminal record encompasses four separate convictions and three separate felony indictments.

Dixon, of the 8000 block of Paul Martin Drive, in Elkridge, was released from prison Aug. 11, less than three months before the Nov. 1 shooting.

In the time between his release and shooting, Dixon’s parole agent met with him in person 24 times and spoke to him by telephone 17 times, according to Phil Pie, the executive deputy director of the state’s division of parole and probation.

For the first two months after Dixon was released, the state placed a GPS monitoring device around his ankle to track his movements. It was removed after Dixon completed 60 days of following curfew hours without any violations, Pie said.

County Executive Kenneth Ulman has asked his staff to examine all possible violations that occurred at the Manorstone Lane house — covering everything from lack of a rental license to underage alcohol consumption.

The party broke up at about 1:15 a.m., when police received calls from partygoers and neighbors reporting that shots had been fired. When police arrived, more than 100 people remained at the residence, which is near the Hobbit’s Glen Golf Club, in west Columbia, and appeared to have been rented out for the party, police said.

Police found Brice shot to death on the driveway, and Quick suffering in the house’s basement from a gunshot wound. The killing of Brice was the county’s second homicide in 2009.

County officials are continuing to investigate the incident and police are doing follow-up interviews with partygoers, said Elizabeth Schroen, a Howard County police spokeswoman.

Officials and police will forward their findings to the appropriate county agencies once the investigation is complete, Schroen said.

This article has been updated.

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user comments (12)

user belovedcartoonmouse says...

Please PLEASE tell me we can still charge the homeowners with administrative violations. Failing to keep your grass neat and trim is the real problem here.

Posted 3:57 PM, 12.07.09 | Permalink

user milton says...

Thank goodness that the judge has the common sense to think that perhaps the gentleman in the basement was shot by his fairy godmother and not the guy at the party with the gun!

Posted 5:18 PM, 12.07.09 | Permalink

user equine says...

Nathaniel Quick must have been shot by the extraterrestrials!

Posted 8:49 PM, 12.07.09 | Permalink

user fduck says...

I would have thought someone named Quick could have dodged the bullet.

Posted 2:28 AM, 12.09.09 | Permalink

user independent says...

Judges have become part of the problem, and must be removed as any incumbent.

Posted 6:54 AM, 12.09.09 | Permalink

user hocoesq says...

If you read and understand the article you will realize that the judge did not rule that Dixon did not shoot Quick; the judge ruled that the state did not provide any evidence on that issue. It was the States Attorney that failed to present the evidence to the judge. The State still has the opportunity to seek an indictment. "If sufficient evidence develops, then we can take it to the grand jury and ask them for an indictment " Perhaps User Independent can explain the process for removing a District Court Judge "as any incumbent"

Posted 10:26 AM, 12.09.09 | Permalink

user grahamers says...

Don't worry, you reactionary lot. before you freak out, learn what you are talking about. Just because the judge dismissed the charges doens't mean that they can not be brought again after more evidence is included. Do you even KNOW ehen double jepardy attaches to a case in Maryland? This is a case of shoddy police work, not of anything out of the ordinary with the judge. It is true to say that just because we have enough reason to think he shot one guy doesn't mean we have enough reason to think he shot another guy. There are too many "what ifs" that the cops could have done away with by simply submitting some basic evidence. (EG: Ballistic evidence that shows that he bullet in the basement guy came from the same gun that shot the dead paralyzed guy.) That they did not do this is a sign that you should be pissed off at the cops and the DA but not the judge.

Posted 12:43 PM, 12.09.09 | Permalink

user freedevon says...

Did it ever occur to you the reason nothing else was submitted (eg:ballistic evidence, or dna) is because it would have cleared him and they would have had to drop ALL charges and let Devon home???? You all listen to the media when the media lies over and over just to give you something to read. The judge made a very good choice in dropping those charges... the only thing that was said is that the shooter was shooting in the front of the house... if anyone did their research instead of running their mouths it would have been clear that a gun fired in the front of the house would not be able to make it DOWNSTAIRS IN THE BACK OF THE HOUSE UNLESS it went through the brick of the house and the floor... and im sorry, no bullet has power enough to do all that. This has been brought to you by: Operation Free Devon :-)

Posted 12:35 PM, 12.10.09 | Permalink

user givemeabreak says...

"freedevon???" Are you serious? That ghetto thug has no business on the streets, and soon, he will be where he belongs, behind bars. "if anyone did their research instead of running their mouths it would have been clear that a gun fired in the front of the house would not be able to make it DOWNSTAIRS IN THE BACK OF THE HOUSE UNLESS it went through the brick of the house and the floor... and im sorry, no bullet has power enough to do all that." Absolutely untrue. There are many pistols that have enough power to punch through building materials at close range (say, w/in 30 meters or so), especially if you have the right type of round. Good luck with your "freedevon" campaign. Maybe you should be ghetto like him and commit a crime. That way you can go to jail with Devon and you guys can snuggle.

Posted 12:49 PM, 12.10.09 | Permalink

user freedevon says...

LOL snuggle? ill wait til he gets home and snuggle with him in the bed.. hey we might even reproduce that way more of him can run around and terrorize YOU. i just hope you remember this conversation cause when he is aquitted of all charges, i will be back to laugh at you and your 'cronies'- in the mean time, why dont you research what you are talking about. And yes, i agree SOME guns are powerful enough but even the judge didnt believe the gun he 'supposedly' used was. I feel for both families in the case but for the 'people' to try and convict an innocent man is rediculous. On top of that, everyone in the media has already tried and convicted him which is even worse. He is innocent until proven guilty IN THE COURT OF LAW... not in your living room. The Judge clearly saw holes in the states case which means the state DIDNT have enough evidence even with all of their 'witnesses' they claim they have, which brings me to another point.... in the courtroom, the state said they had ONE witness... not WITNESSES. There were at least 100 people that were questioned that night and only ONE claims they saw devon do this? REDICULOUS. Thank you for my 'luck' with my campaigne.. but the evidence speaks for itself... or should I say, lack there of.

Posted 1:15 PM, 12.10.09 | Permalink

user givemeabreak says...

You are going to wait for him to get home? 25 to life is a long time to wait.

Posted 1:25 PM, 12.10.09 | Permalink

user freedevon says...

25 to life is a long time and im just thankful he didnt do it so he wont get that type of time. Althought going to trial is very lengthy as well... thank you for your concern in my life- it TRULY makes a difference, i can finally sleep well at night knowing you care. LOL

Posted 1:31 PM, 12.10.09 | Permalink