Baltimore man charged with murder after attack

A Baltimore man is charged with first-degree murder as police say he and another man attacked Dionte Green, a 40-year-old man who died in December after he was found unresponsive and unconscious near the Seton Hill neighborhood. Baltimore police have charged Alante Batson, 22, of Baltimore with first-degree murder in relation to Green’s death, court documents obtained by The Sun state.

According to the charging documents, Green was walking in front of the Downtown Mini Mart store on the first block of N. Howard St. on Nov. 24 when he was attacked by Batson and another man referred to as “June Bug.” A scuffle occurred, court documents state, and after Green was knocked down, the two men walked with Green to the 200 block of Lexington St. about two blocks away. Green was later found unconscious and unresponsive by a passerby. Green was taken to the hospital with severe injuries to his head and died Dec. 2.

The Chief Medical Examiner’s Office ruled his death a homicide via blunt force trauma earlier this month. Investigators wrote that surveillance footage caught some of the incident, including the initial scuffle in front of the store as well as the two men shaking hands as they walk away from Green’s unconscious body on Lexington Street.

Charging documents state that the day after Green died, officers obtained Green’s cellphone and an investigation into Green’s social media accounts and cellphone revealed Batson as one of the suspects in the attack. Police wrote that Batson and his friend, “June Bug,” assaulted Green and that Batson admitted to taking Green’s property from him, including his cell phone.

The coronavirus pandemic surpassed a milestone that once seemed unimaginable: 500,000 deaths in the United States. It’s a reminder of the virus's reach into all corners of the country and communities of every size and makeup. In recent weeks, virus deaths have fallen from more than 4,000 reported on some days in January to an average of fewer than 1,900 per day. Experts warn that over 100,000 more deaths are likely in the next few months, despite a massive campaign to vaccinate people. The 500,000 death toll is roughly equal to the number of Americans killed in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War combined, or akin to a 9/11 terrorist attack every day for nearly six months.

As of 4:50 p.m. EST, Feb. 22