Man Sentenced to 40 Years in Middle River Home Invasion Killing
A 24-year-old man was sentenced to 40 years in prison Monday for his part in a 2021 home invasion and murder in Middle River.
A jury in May found Thomas Thurston Jones III of Edgewood guilty of felony first-degree murder and home invasion for being one of four masked men who forced their way into a townhome, looking to steal marijuana and cash.
The men burst into the home on Akin Circle and held the occupants at gunpoint, police said. As some of the occupants tried to resist, shots were fired, striking 22-year-old Antone Green in the torso and Gavin Bernard Bell in the leg June 4, 2021.
Green died of his injuries on June 18, 2021. Bell survived his injuries.
Jones is not thought to have been the gunman in the crime. That person and two others involved in the home invasion have not been publicly identified or arrested.
Under Maryland law, someone participating in a felony such as a home invasion can be convicted of murder if a killing occurs during the crime.
Baltimore County Circuit Court Judge Andrew Battista sentenced Jones to life in prison, suspending all but 40 years. He also sentenced him to 25 years each for home invasion and conspiracy to commit home invasion, to run concurrently with the life sentence. The state had recommended 60 years in prison and the defense had asked for 20 years.
Battista said he took into account that Jones took part in the crime but was not the actual shooter.
“The jury’s findings indicate he was one of the people in the house,” Battista said.
Police wrote in charging documents that Jones and a co-defendant, Kameron Zane Cosby, had gang associations. Evidence officers found inside the home suggested drug distribution, including marijuana, a digital scale, and cash, police wrote in court documents.
Surveillance video showed a maroon Acura TL and a light-colored sedan entering the neighborhood shortly before the shooting. The cars were seen circling several times, and several people were seen walking toward the house and then fleeing moments after the gunfire, the charging documents state.
Cosby was driving one of the cars and allegedly served as a look-out. He entered an Alford plea to home invasion in 2023 and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. An Alford plea means the defendant agrees there is enough evidence to convict him but is not an admission of guilt. Legally, it is treated the same as a guilty plea.
A witness told detectives there had been two previous home invasions at the address and that he suspected members of a local gang. Police said in charging documents that Jones and Cosby were associated with the “Bloods Tree Top Piru 400” gang.
Detectives from the Harford County Sheriff's Office stopped Jones June 10, 2021, for another matter and later searched his phone and car. Data extracted from the phone showed it was near the Akin Circle home during the timeframe of the shooting.
Jones had a previous conviction of drug possession with intent to distribute and was on probation when the home invasion happened. While in jail awaiting trial and sentencing, Jones racked up 10 infractions, Assistant State’s Attorney Katherine Smith told Judge Battista.
He assaulted a detention center inmate and was found in possession of an improvised metal weapon, or “shank,” she said.
Smith said Jones was also caught in jail with buprenorphine and several squares of K2, a synthetic cannabinoid.
Jones’ criminal history showed a history of escalating seriousness, Smith said, from drug possession with intent to distribute, to robbing people with firearms, to murder. And though Jones was not the gunman, he was part of the crime that led to Green’s death.
“The punishment has to reflect the seriousness of the crime, and there is no crime more serious than murder,” Smith said.
A family member who spoke at Monday’s sentencing said Green had been planning to move from the home because he knew the environment wasn’t good for him.
“He was trying to better his life and he deserved the opportunity to keep trying,” Green's sister said. She said his death stole the sense of peace from her family.
Green’s father, Ronald Green, told Jones his actions created a ripple effect of pain, impacting both families and many others. He said his son will always be missing from family events and holidays.
“This is something my family and I are going to carry to our graves,” Green’s father said. “We’ll never be able to get him back and that chair is always going to be empty.”
Jones’ attorney Donald Wright said his client started abusing prescription drugs at age 14.
“It’s significant,” Wright said. “He is a young man that has succeeded in his life. He’s a high school graduate. He’s got lots of friends and family here. He’s got tremendous support in the community… but this [drug abuse] has impacted his development.”
He said Jones has been diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety and depression.
“He is profoundly remorseful,” Wright said. “He never intended for Mr. Green to lose his life and he feels horrible that that occurred.”
Jones’ mother said she moved her kids to Harford County when Jones was in eighth grade because people told her it would be a better environment for them, but her son started getting into trouble around the time he turned 18. Family members said Jones was an honor student and an athlete at Aberdeen High School.
“He is somebody that has a lot of redemptive qualities,” defense attorney Wright said.
Assistant State’s Attorney John Reilly said even though it’s not clear exactly what role Jones played in the crime, he was part of a pre-planned, thought-out attack and went into a home to commit a robbery with weapons.
“It was foreseeable that the use of weapons in the robbery could result in death or serious injury,” Reilly said.
Jones addressed the court before his sentencing. He said despite what the state and his own attorney said, he was innocent and “just a victim of circumstances.”
He said he was sorry for the pain both families were in and encouraged his family to stay strong.
“There’s a storm right now but the sun always shines,” Jones said.