Meghan Riley Lewis died shoeless, Harford County State’s Attorney David Ryden told a jury on Tuesday.

Never mind that it was pouring that night in December 2023. Lewis had gone outside to try to convince a guest at a dinner party, who was having an argument with her partner, to come inside her condo, Ryden said.

But not long after, she was fatally shot by a food delivery driver.

“Shoeless is how she bled to death in the cold December rain two days after Christmas,” Ryden said.

Brian Delen, 48, of Bel Air, is charged with first- and second-degree murder, first-degree assault and use of firearm in the killing of Lewis.

His trial began Tuesday in a crowded Harford County courtroom filled with Lewis’ friends. Some met her through her activism — Lewis, a trans woman, was an advocate for LGBTQ people — others through her love for the Grateful Dead. She was known for her generosity, sense of humor and her catchphrase: Stay sparkly.

What is in dispute at trial is not whether Delen fatally shot Lewis, but why. Attorneys for Delen said he acted out of fear and in self-defense. Witnesses brought by prosecutors, however, say they did not hear any altercation.

Food delivery — particularly through GrubHub and DoorDash — is Delen’s primary source of income, said Tara LeCompte, one of his attorneys. It’s how he rents a small room in a townhouse in Bel Air and pays for his car insurance and hobbies. He’s been a delivery driver since 2019, LeCompte said.

Barbara Deluca, a retired government employee who lives in the building next to Lewis, was getting ready to watch a movie the night of Dec. 27, she told the jury. She placed an order at Asian Cafe around 5:52 p.m.

Delen picked up her order and drove to the English Country Manor, a condo community in Bel Air, LeCompte said.

Delen parked and saw Lewis outside, his attorney said, and thought she could be the person who placed the order. “Did you order food, sir?” his attorney said he asked. Lewis, the attorney said, became upset.

LeCompte said Delen rolled his window up and moved to another parking spot. Then, Lewis approached him.

She was standing next to his door, LeCompte said, and Delen felt trapped.

Delen then pulled his gun from his side holster and shot at Lewis, LeCompte said. He yelled for help, then called 911 himself. He told them he shot someone, LeCompte said.

“This was a chance encounter between a lady trying to salvage her dinner party and a delivery driver,” she told the jury.

Witnesses brought by prosecutors on Tuesday said they didn’t hear yelling or an altercation between Lewis and Delen that would have prompted the shooting.

Diamond Velez-Figueroa, the 23-year-old dinner guest Lewis had gone outside to look for, was sitting in a car and saw Delen arrive at the condo community. There were no noises, yelling or altercation, she told the jury, until there was a loud bang. Lewis was pronounced dead later that evening at a nearby hospital.

The trial is expected to continue into early next week.