Faith Leaders Hold Prayer Service in Wake of Bowie Murder

A group of Bowie residents and area faith leaders held a prayer service Tuesday afternoon at the scene of the murder of a Bowie parent.

Deon Eugene Warren, 19, of the 8800 block of East Grove in Upper Marlboro, was arrested Oct. 1 at a hotel in Laurel, reports the Capital-Gazette. He is charged with first-degree murder in the Sept. 30 shooting death of Mitchell White, 39, of Flamingo Lane in Bowie. Prince George’s County Police say White was fatally shot as he tried to break up a fight between teenagers in the Bel Air Swim and Racquet Club parking lot.

The shooting happened near a tree-lined area close to Bowie High School.

“We share the shock and pain of Mitchell White’s death,” said Rabbi Steve Weisman of Bowie’s Temple Solel, in a news release. “We are here to give our love and support to his family and friends. We will work to do all that we can to make sure this does not happen here again.”

Attendees gatherd in the Bowie Library parking lot and walked to the site of the shooting, according to the Interfaith Council of Suburban Maryland, formerly known as the Bowie Interfaith Clergy Association.

“The clergy of the area are calling for a gathering of the community in response to this violent tear in the fabric of our community. We hope to bring healing and closure. We will reclaim the space. There is no space that is not sacred,” said the Rev. Cynthia Snavely in response to the shooting.

The Interfaith Council is working with private citizens, individual houses of worship, elected officials, and other community leaders on this event.

Weisman added, “Others may attempt to define Bowie through this senseless violence, but it is up to us, the Bowie community, to reject such characterizations, to come together and say loudly and clearly ‘We are one,’ and ‘We will not let this happen in our community again.’”

Related stories:

Murder Suspect Arrested in Shooting Near Bowie Swim Club

One Dies in Shooting Outside Bowie Swim Club

» Rabbi Steve Weisman of Temple Solel in Bowie leads a prayer service at the site where a man was shot and killed outside Bel Air Swim and Racquet Club. Credit: Courtesy of City of Bowie.