Maryland Man Pleads to Gun Charge in Paramedic Shooting Incident

Jan. 24--A Prince George's County man pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm with a felony conviction in relation to an April incident that left one firefighter dead and another, a Sykesville resident, seriously injured.

Darrell Lumpkin was indicted by a grand jury in July of six counts, including three counts of possession of a firearm with a felony conviction and three counts of prohibition of possessing a regulated firearm due to a disqualifying crime, according to electronic court records. He pleaded guilty Friday to one of the firearm possession with a felony conviction counts and faces a maximum of 15 years in prison, according to a news release from Prince George's County.

He is scheduled to appear in court for a sentencing hearing March 31, according to the release. The charge of possessing a firearm with a felony conviction carries a five-year minimum sentence, of which no years can be suspended, according to Maryland charging language.

Lumpkin shot three people -- paramedic John E. Ulmschneider, firefighter Kevin Swain, of Sykesville, and Lumpkin's brother, on April 15 as they came into his house for a welfare check. Ulmschneider succumbed to his injuries and Swain was critically injured but survived, according to the release. Lumpkin's brother sustained a gunshot wound to his shoulder and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.

Lumpkin was not charged with assault on Swain or his brother, or charged in the death of Ulmschneider, according to the release. Ulmschneider's family has filed a civil suit against Lumpkin, according to electronic court records. The case is scheduled for a status hearing on Jan. 31.

Swain, who grew up in Sykesville and serves as a firefighter and emergency medical technician for the Sykesville fire company as well as a live-in member at the Morningside Volunteer Fire Department in Prince George's, spent more than a week in Shock Trauma at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore after the shooting.

When Swain, Ulmschneider and Lumpkin's brother arrived at Lumpkin's house and received no response from the man inside, they attempted to force their way in, police said. That's when Lumpkin fired several rounds, hitting Swain four times and killing Ulmschneider.

(c)2017 the Carroll County Times (Westminster, Md.)