Annapolis, MD – This morning in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court, Wallace Dudley Ball, age 64, of Randallstown entered a guilty plea to First-Degree Murder in the February 2025 Jessup Correctional Institute (JCI) death of his cellmate, 61-year-old Warren Michael Griffin. Ball is currently serving a life plus thirty-year sentence for a 1994 murder. Sentencing in this case will be scheduled at a later time.
Following the guilty plea, Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess commented, “I want to commend Maryland State Police and DPSCS for their thorough investigation, which helped secure a strong case against this defendant. Hopefully today’s plea provides some peace for the victim’s family and we look forward to sentencing.”
On February 21, 2025, shortly before 7:00 pm, correctional officers at the Jessup Correctional Institute (JCI) were conducting routine cell checks when they discovered inmate Warren Michael Griffin, age 61, deceased on a cell floor in Building F of the facility. Griffin’s cellmate, Wallace Dudley Ball, was taken into custody. The victim was found with a cord wrapped around his neck and blood staining was found on the cell floor.
The defendant made a written statement confessing, “While in the cell with Warren Griffin, I punched him in the face then tied a string around his neck until he was dead. Wallace Ball". Investigators' handwriting analysis found that the statement matched the writing sample from a previous note written by the defendant.
Investigators with the Maryland State Police and Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services interviewed facility staff, collected photos and physical evidence. They observed that Ball had staining consistent with blood on his shoes, pants, and hands. Forensic technicians swabbed the defendant’s hands, collected DNA swabs, collected clothing, and took photographs.
The State was represented by Assistant State’s Attorney Shane Nolan. The investigation was led by the Maryland State Police Homicide Unit and the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) Intelligence and Investigative Division (IID).