A Baltimore man was found guilty Tuesday of murdering 19-year-old bystander Cameran Holt in 2024 in Federal Hill.

Alexis Cancel-Soto was one of three men charged in the aftermath of a shootout on West Hamburg Street. He was found guilty of first-degree murder after the jury deliberated for two days.

Holt was shot by a stray bullet on Oct. 27, while out celebrating a family member’s gender reveal. She died two weeks later.

Prosecutors said Cancel-Soto and the other suspects intended to shoot a man but ended up killing Holt in a reckless sequence of events.

The other suspects in connection with Holt’s death — Daeshaun Clark and Devontaye Richardson — are scheduled to go on trial next month.

Defendant’s attorney argued self-defense

The prosecutor says that the man and Richardson got into an argument that night. It led to the Cancel-Soto, Richardson and Clark shooting at the man driving away, the prosecution said.

Holt was shot while in the crossfire.

The state added that Cancel-Soto ran toward danger and admitted to illegally carrying a gun.

Cancel-Soto’s attorney argues that he fired shots in self-defense. The defense claims that the man who was shot while driving away was the aggressor, threatened the group that Cancel-Soto came to visit that night and allegedly fired multiple shots at them.

The attorney also told jurors that Cancel-Soto tried to protect others but also appeared to be scared that night. He added that Cancel-Soto didn’t intend to kill anyone, and that it was his first time firing a gun at a person.

Prosecutors said that after police arrested Cancel-Soto, he admitted to getting rid of the gun he used in the shooting. Despite all of the evidence, it’s still unclear who actually shot Holt because guns weren’t recovered.

The detective on the case testified last week, saying footage from the early morning of Oct. 27 showed Richardson arguing with a man driving a purple Dodge Challenger in a parking lot on West Hamburg Street.

The former owner of the parking lot also took the witness stand, saying he saw multiple people with guns at his lot.

He said the driver of the purple Challenger left and then came back to drive off in his car.

A stray bullet went through Holt’s brain stem, leaving her paralyzed and on life support. According to court documents, investigators found that Holt’s car was struck by gunfire from the rear.

Holt was described as a nurturing sister, an animal lover and a newly certified behavioral technician who dreamed of becoming a mother.

Just two weeks before she was struck by a stray bullet in Federal Hill, she had earned her registered behavior technician certification, planning a career working with children with developmental disabilities. She died 11 days later, but her family says her legacy endures — in her siblings, her friends and even in the lives saved through her organ donations.

WJZ is a media partner of The Baltimore Banner.