Man sentenced in fatal shooting of Howard County sheriff’s deputy in Federal Hill

The Baltimore man convicted of manslaughter in the September 2023 fatal shooting of an off-duty Howard County sheriff’s deputy in Federal Hill was sentenced on Thursday.

Jewel Crowder, 41, faced a maximum of 35 years, but was sentenced to 20 years for manslaughter, using a firearm in the commission of a crime of violence and reckless endangerment, according to an online case search.

According to previous reporting by The Baltimore Sun, in the early morning of Sept. 29, 2023, a dispute inside a bar in the 1100 block of South Charles Street spilled outside. Crowder shot at 23-year-old Ryan Demby between Mother’s Federal Hill Grille and Wayward Bar & Kitchen.

Officers found Demby lying on the sidewalk surrounded by bystanders. He later died at the hospital.

Investigators identified Crowder as the shooter from surveillance footage and witnesses. Crowder was arrested at 5:30 p.m. on the day of the shooting.

The jury acquitted Jewel Crowder of murder in the fatal shooting but found him guilty of the previously mentioned charges in June, according to The Sun’s previous reporting.

Roland Harris IV, Crowder’s defense attorney, says that Crowder acted in defense of “a rapidly unfolding armed violent threat.”

“He was not the first to pull a firearm that evening and he, as well as others, attempted to diffuse the situation but forces beyond his control decided otherwise,” Harris said in an emailed statement. “All of this was presented during the course of the court proceedings and we respect both the judge and jury’s decisions.”

Baltimore Sun reporter Alex Mann contributed to this article.

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