CAMBRIDGE – On Dec. 14, 2023, after a multi-day trial, a Dorchester County Circuit Court jury found Tramelle Lamar Williams Jr., 24 years old, guilty of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, assault in the first degree, and assault in the second degree, armed robbery, robbery, firearm use in the commission of a felony, two counts of firearm possession with a felony conviction, loaded handgun on person, and handgun on person. The charges relate to the homicide of Taijay Daniels in the area of Race and Pleasant Street.

On Jan. 11, after a second multi-day jury trial, a separate Dorchester County jury found Williams guilty of first-degree felony murder, second-degree murder, assault in the first degree, and assault in the second degree, armed robbery, robbery, and firearm use m the commission of a felony. These charges relate to the homicide of Lory Fields in the area of the 700 block of High Street.

On March 4, Williams was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for each homicide, to run consecutive to one another. Williams was also sentenced to an additional 60 years for the crimes of armed robbery and the use of a firearm in the commission of crimes of violence, a statement from the Officer of the State’s Attorney for Dorchester County said.

The homicides of each victim took place in the evening hours of Dec. 8, 2022. The defendant was captured on surveillance video committing the robbery and murder of Mr. Daniels in the area of Pleasant Street at 7:14 p.m.

At approximately 10 p.m. while still at the scene investigating the shooting of Mr. Daniels, law enforcement was notified of a second homicide victim in the area of High Street, subsequently identified as Mr. Fields. The investigation ultimately revealed the homicides to be related.

On Dec. 9, 2022, the defendant returned to the area of the High Street homicide and was ultimately shot m the leg by law enforcement during a foot pursuit. At that time, the defendant was found to be in possession of a firearm consistent with each homicide and in possession of Mr. Daniels' cell phone, and of Mr. Fields' car keys. Forensic DNA and fingerprint evidence further linked the defendant to the crimes.

On August 17, 2023, the Circuit Court granted a defense motion to sever, requiring that the juries not hear evidence related to all charges in one trial, so as to avoid undue prejudice

Cpl. Braightmeyer and Sgt. Schwarb of the Maryland State Police Homicide Unit led their respective cases, with substantial assistance from other members of their unit and from the Cambridge Police Department. The Defendant's apprehension would not have been possible without proactive policing efforts from the Cambridge Police Department.

The verdicts of each jury reflect the hard work of all law enforcement officers involved, and their dedication to conducting thorough investigations. The trials were prosecuted by Senior Assistant State's Attorney Ella Disharoon and State's Attorney Amanda Leonard.

“Ms. Leonard and the entire staff at the Dorchester County State’s Attorney's Office express our sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Taijay Darnels and Lory Fields,” the statement said.