Johnson Convicted for Murder of Phylicia Barnes

Reprinted from Baltimore City State’s Attorney News 2.6.2013

A Baltimore City Circuit Court jury convicted Michael M. Johnson today of second-degree murder for killing Phylicia Barnes, Baltimore City State’s Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein announced.

Ms. Barnes came to Baltimore from North Carolina on December 17, 2010, to visit and stay with her sister. The sister saw Ms. Barnes for the last time on the morning of December 28, 2010, when she left her Northwest Baltimore home to go to work.

The body of Ms. Barnes was discovered in the Susquehanna River on April 20, 2011.

Scheduled for sentencing on March 20, 2013, Johnson, 29, faces a maximum of 30 years in prison.

“Many people deserve credit and recognition for today’s outcome. I commend the members of the Baltimore City Police, Maryland State Police, Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office, and FBI who made contributions. I also congratulate Assistant State’s Attorneys Lisa Goldberg and Tony LaPolla, who did a superb job of marshalling the evidence and prevailing in an exceptionally challenging case,” State’s Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein said. “Most importantly, I hope that today’s conviction helps Phylicia Barnes’s loved ones to achieve a sense of closure.”