Man Defends Self in Carjacking Retrial, Found Guilty a Second Time

OWINGS MILLS—A man who wanted to represent himself in his first trial for armed carjacking got the chance to act as his own attorney this week in a retrial and was convicted a second time.

Deandre Jackson, 37, was accused in 2023 of forcing a woman at gunpoint to withdraw $500 cash from an ATM, stealing her car, and later making two more withdrawals of $200 each using her Venmo debit card. The woman also said Jackson threatened to shoot her puppy, who was in the car during the ordeal.

Assistant State's Attorney Lauren Stone said Jackson's actions changed the victim's life forever and shook her sense of security.

"It is everybody's worst nightmare to be confronted with a masked, armed individual, forced into your car and have demands made of you," Stone said.

Before Jackson’s first trial, he told Baltimore County Circuit Court Judge Stacey Mayer he was unhappy with his public defender and wanted to represent himself. The court denied the request, finding his reasons for dismissing counsel insufficient.

In January 2024, Jackson went on trial, defended by Assistant Public Defender Corilanus Ferris. A Baltimore County jury found Jackson guilty of armed carjacking, kidnapping, assault, and other related charges. Mayer sentenced Jackson to 30 years in prison.

Jackson appealed, and in August 2025, the Appellate Court of Maryland issued an opinion saying he should have been allowed to fire his public defender and represent himself. His request for a new trial was granted.

On Monday at Jackson's bench trial, he sat alone at the defense table in an orange jail jumper with shackles on his ankles. He cross-examined witnesses, including April Stone, who said she was sure Jackson was the man who pointed a revolver at her as she got out of her car.

“You know you were there,” April Stone told Jackson. “You know you trapped me in the car for that time. We both know it was you."

It was around 8:10 p.m March 7, 2023, and Stone was returning home from picking up dinner and had her puppy in the car. She said as she got out of her 2018 Acura TLX, Jackson rushed up to her in the parking lot of her apartment on Woodkey Lane near Reisterstown Road.

She said he pointed a revolver at her and told her not to scream. He then demanded $2,000. Stone told him she didn’t have cash and said he could use her bank card at the M&T bank across the street. With the woman sitting on top of her puppy in the passenger seat, Jackson drove to the drive-through ATM and had her withdraw $500.

She testified Jackson became so frustrated trying to use her Venmo debit card at the ATM that he had her call customer service.

He later let her out of the car with her dog, driving away with her cell phone and bank cards. She walked to a nearby store and called the police. Officers were able to locate her phone tossed into some bushes, and a police helicopter later spotted and followed the stolen car.

Stone said the carjacker was masked and wore gloves, dark clothes, and white and red Nike Air Jordans. She couldn’t see his face, she said, but after hearing him question her in court, she said she recognized him by his voice, speech patterns, and the vocabulary he used.

Jackson tried to cast doubt on the identification. When police tracked down the stolen Acura at a Royal Farms in Baltimore City at about 2 a.m., two men were inside the car. The driver, a man Jackson said was his brother, ran but was quickly caught by police in the parking lot. A semi-automatic handgun went skidding across the pavement during the takedown, police said. Prosecutors said investigators did not believe that gun was used in the carjacking because the victim described the weapon as a revolver.

Jackson, the passenger, also fled on foot and was chased by police on the ground and in a helicopter for about 12 minutes until he was located on the side of I-895.

When police found Jackson, he was wearing white and red Nike Air Jordans, matching the shoes the victim described. Police also found $916 in cash in his pocket when they arrested him—$900 of it in crisp $50 and $20 bills.

A Baltimore County Police officer testified she later found the car’s key fob in the area where a police helicopter pilot had seen him running.

When he was brought to police headquarters in Towson, Jackson was found to be wearing an empty shoulder holster. Police did not locate the revolver.

The woman had told Jackson her Venmo card could be used for withdrawals at 7-Eleven stores but not bank ATMs. Video from two 7-Elevens showed a man matching the carjacker’s description headed to the ATM shortly after the reported carjacking.

No video was recovered from the M&T Bank ATM where the woman said she was forced to withdraw cash. A Baltimore County police detective testified that the bank had not responded to a subpoena requesting the footage.

Stone was able to send police screenshots of her bank statements documenting the withdrawals.

Jackson called one witness to testify on his behalf. His sister-in-law testified that Jackson had been at her home until around 11 p.m. that night.

He also took the stand to tell his side of the story, saying that he’d been at his sister-in-law’s home and that his brother picked him up that night in the Acura. He said he did not know the car was stolen.

“I had no knowledge of where the vehicle came from,” Jackson said. “And [my brother] never told me where he got the vehicle from.”

He said there was no strong evidence pointing to him other than the victim’s testimony.

Judge Mayer again found Jackson guilty of all charges and sentenced Jackson to a total of 30 years in prison, a sentence at the top of state guidelines. She noted his prior criminal history which included burglary and drug possession with intent to distribute, and said he had only been out of state custody for a few months when this crime was committed

"That gives this court significant pause as to the safety of other people," she said.

The first five years of his sentence will be served without the possibility of parole. He will get credit for the time he has served since his arrest the night of the crime.

In her victim impact statement, Stone told Jackson her faith calls her to forgive him.

"While you are going to prison physically, I pray you bring this to the feet of Jesus so that you can be set free spiritually," she said.