BALTIMORE, Md. — When police entered the house on North Curley Street in East Baltimore for a report of an assault, they discovered 33-year-old Shanlette Lewis lying in a pool of blood inside her front door.
She died from her injuries two days later, and now, her cousin, 31-year-old Demetrick Lewis, now faces charges in her death.
One of their family members who did not wish to be identified spoke to us of the double tragedy.
“A good spirit. She was a good person,” said the man standing outside the victim’s home. “She didn’t deserve it. She didn’t deserve it. I mean, a little argument. This? It’s a big loss for the family. I mean it’s two losses---a death and a life that’s thrown away, because he didn’t think.”
According to charging documents, Lewis got into an argument with his cousin, threatened her and then pushed her down the stairs to the basement where she hit her head on the concrete floor.
Allegedly, he then carried her upstairs, grabbed her by the shirt and dragged her through the kitchen and living room leaving her by the front door.
He fled from the home before police arrived.
Demetrick Lewis is being held on First and Second Degree Murder charges, but family members aren’t convinced he meant to kill his cousin.
“It’s just a heated argument that one thing led to another and it went left, but I’m quite sure it was accidental… definitely. I mean he loved her just like she loved him, cause it’s tough love out here,” we were told.
At the time of his cousin’s death, Lewis was still facing charges dating back two years ago in Baltimore County after he allegedly got into a fight with a co-worker at the Edenwald retirement home and beat him severely, telling him during the assault, “I am going to try to kill you.”
