The second of two suspects in a coordinated robbery that ended in a teenager’s death was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison, with all but 32 years suspended — a punishment the victim’s family called “a slap in the face.”
“Twenty years for first-degree murder,” Steven Freeman, Devin Freeman’s father, said outside the Anne Arundel County Circuit Court. “That’s a crime.”
Defendant Devin Twigg, who was not the gunman but an accomplice to the Brooklyn Park robbery that left Devin Freeman dead, will be eligible for parole after 20 years. Though she acknowledged Twigg’s efforts to better himself while being held in jail, public defender Elizabeth Palan told Anne Arundel Circuit Judge Alison Asti it was unlikely her client would prevail in his first attempt at parole.
Twigg, 20, of Nottingham, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and a firearm offense in February. Wednesday’s hearing before Asti concluded county prosecutors’ pursuit of justice for Devin Freeman and his family.
Speaking with The Capital, however, Devin Freeman’s parents, Jessica and Steven Freeman, said they were frustrated with law enforcement’s handling of the case. They expressed their desire for harsher sentences in general, or at least an equal sentence for Twigg and Jaden Crowner, who was also involved in Devin Freeman’s death and got a sentence that was 18 years longer than Twigg’s.
“He did nothing different to earn a lesser sentence,” Steven Freeman told the judge.
“My son was shown no mercy, neither should the defendants,” Jessica Freeman said earlier in the hearing. “When they stole Devin’s life, they stole 30 others.”
In June, Crowner, 20, was sentenced to life in prison with all but 50 years suspended. After recanting two previous pleas, Crowner submitted Alford pleas to first-degree murder and firearm charges. An Alford plea is not an admission of guilt but an acknowledgment that the state would have had enough evidence to convict had the case gone to trial.
On Wednesday, Palan and Assistant State’s Attorney Glen Neubauer argued over how much of Twigg’s life sentence should be suspended: 30 or 35 years.
Neubauer referred to Twigg’s prior criminal history before the “heinous” ambush and murder, including theft and firearm crimes, as well as a 2019 conviction after a burglary in which firearms were stolen.
“Firearm after firearm after firearm,” Neubauer said, “and a firearm was used here.”
Devin Freeman, 19, was shot and killed in 2022 behind a funeral home in Brooklyn Park after meeting Crowner for acannabis sale. Twigg, police said, followed the pair from their initial meeting spot before he and Crowner got into a fight with Freeman. Surveillance footage showed Freeman falling during the fight and both suspects moving his body.
During Crowner’s sentencing in June, Neubauer said Freeman’s body was discovered in a trash container. Detectives also found Freeman’s burnt backpack in a nearby alley and though a witness said Freeman had hundreds of dollars in cash when he met Crowner, no money was recovered from the scene.
Palan said the reduced life sentence reflected her client’s role, as compared to Crowner, who she described as “the mastermind.” Referencing Twigg’s “tough” childhood, Palan recommended Twigg be sent to the Patuxent Institution, where an eligible youth program could provide him with resources.
The public defender said she believed her client would participate in any program in which he was enrolled.
“He has shown he will do it,” Palan said. “He has engaged. He wants to engage … he is capable of change if given the opportunity.”
In delivering her sentence, Asti agreed that the difference in the roles played by Crowner and Twigg in the crime was “significant.” She commended Twigg’s progress before referring him to the Patuxent Institution. Asti referred Crowner to the same maximum-security facility in Jessup.
Jessica Freeman said she did not believe Twigg’s upbringing was a “valid excuse” for her son’s murder. She told the judge that Devin Freeman’s childhood “was not easy” either, but that “he did not kill people. He protected those that he loved.”
The 19-year-old’s family filled nearly half the courtroom Wednesday, though only Jessica and Steven Freeman addressed Asti.
Jessica Freeman said that since her son died, she is “broken to the core” and has experienced an “indescribable pain” every day.
“It feels like your heart ripping from your chest,” she said. “I will never be the same person again.”
In a text message, she said the family continues to honor Devin every year on his birthday, July 16. His closest friend, a former girlfriend, makes sure that a picture of him is at every birthday party and holiday. She took the picture to her prom, as well.
“Everyone loves and still celebrates his life,” Jessica Freeman said.
