Trial Begins in Prince George's County Murder Case Citing Domestic Violence Pattern

A Prince George’s County murder trial opened with jurors hearing that prosecutors see the killing of Sharita Cristwell as part of a longer domestic-violence pattern, not a sudden act. Harry Lindsey is accused of fatally shooting Cristwell in Prince George’s County over the Fourth of July weekend in 2025.

Jury selection began April 20 in Upper Marlboro, and the panel was sworn as the case moved forward against a backdrop of family loss and prior police contact. Lindsey and Cristwell had been in a relationship for about a decade and shared two young children. Cristwell’s mother, Gereese McCoter, sat in the courtroom, underscoring how personal the case remained for the family.

Prosecutors asked the judge to admit evidence from an earlier assault case, including police body-camera footage and testimony from Bladensburg officers who responded to a domestic violence call at the couple’s home about three weeks before the killing. The judge allowed the evidence, meaning jurors will hear not only about the fatal shooting, but also about the earlier events prosecutors say show a pattern. That matters in cases like this because intent, escalation and warning signs can shape how a jury understands what happened before the gunfire.

The earlier case centered on a June 16, 2025 arrest, when Lindsey was charged with first- and second-degree assault. Court reporting says prosecutors alleged he strangled Cristwell, and County Executive Aisha Braveboy said prosecutors sought to keep him jailed without bond, but he was released days later. Braveboy said, “Anyone who strangles you intends to kill you.” Cristwell was later found dead after police responded to a reported shooting in the 700 block of Stretford Way in Landover on July 5, 2025. Lindsey was arrested the next morning in Capitol Heights.

The case has become a stark example of how domestic violence can intensify even after law enforcement intervention. Cristwell was 29 and Lindsey was 32 when she was killed. DC News Now reported that McCoter and Cristwell’s sister, Kim Cristwell, spoke publicly after the killing to warn other victims. The family’s grief echoes the larger toll in Maryland, where the Department of Health reported 24 intimate partner homicides in 2023 and about 100 firearm intimate-partner homicides from 2019 through 2023, with almost 9 in 10 victims female.

For Prince George’s County, the trial is more than a murder case. It is a test of whether a prior strangulation arrest, a domestic call and an earlier assault charge were enough to trigger protection before a relationship turned lethal.