Road Rage Killing In Essex Sends Baltimore Man To Prison

ESSEX, MD — A road rage killing in Essex sent a Baltimore man to prison on Wednesday, prosecutors announced.

A press release said Rylan Picard-Kevin Harris, 31, was sentenced to life imprisonment with 20 years consecutive in the fatal shooting of Shalia Hendrix on a roadway in Baltimore County.

Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger said the shooting happened on May 5, 2023.

The prosecution said Hendrix was driving on Maryland Route 702 with a friend when she was shot in the back by someone in a nearby car traveling in the same direction.

Hendrix's car spun out and crashed into a wooded, marshy area off Route 702 near Eastern Boulevard, the state's attorney said.

Shellenberger said Hendrix died as a result of the single gunshot and "the incident appears to have been a random act of road rage with no known connection between the victims and the defendant."

Prosecutors said detectives obtained video surveillance from businesses and traffic cameras and were able to identify the car of the victim and the car from which the shot was fired.

The state's attorney said the victims and Harris were traveling out of Baltimore City, onto I-695 and then onto Route 702.

Shellenberger said the video showed Harris' car returning to his home after the shooting.

The prosecution said Harris at the time was with Darashea Gross, who previously pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact.

Court records show that Harris was convicted of second-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and other gun offenses.

"I want to express my appreciation to the excellent work of the Baltimore County Police in solving this senseless act of apparent road rage," Shellenberger said in a press release. "I offer my condolences to the family and loved ones of Ms. Hendrix and hope that the just sentence in this case will help in some way in coping with their loss."

This map shows the area where the state's attorney said the shooting happened.