The key witness in a crime that sparked a public outcry this year was fatally shot, possibly jeopardizing the case against a man who is charged with shooting a 10-year-old boy in the neck during a west-side gun battle.

Juan Wilson, 18, whom police describe as a drug dealer, was shot eight times in his legs and head. His body was found Monday night in the back yard of a rowhouse in the 1900 block of W. Baltimore St.

Wilson had identified Perry Spain, 19, as the man who fired the shot that seriously wounded Tevin Montrel Davis while the boy sat on his front porch on July 15. Tevin survived the shooting, but the violence enraged the city, especially when Spain was released from jail on $35,000 bail four days after his arrest.

Baltimore police say they are investigating whether Wilson was killed because he picked Spain in a photographic lineup.

Wilson was the only witness to accuse Spain of shooting Tevin, court documents show.

Margaret T. Burns, spokeswoman for the state's attorney's office, called Wilson's death a "catastrophic loss" for the case. She would not say whether charges against Spain would be dropped.

"The state will take immediate steps to assess all other evidence and testimony to determine how to proceed," Burns said.

"That's one thing we have to explore," said Maj. Laurie Zuromski, commander of the department's homicide unit. Zuromski added that Wilson was a drug dealer and user who might have been killed for other reasons.

"One of the hazards [of dealing drugs] is that you can die," Zuromski said.

'Not necessarily true'

Spain's lawyer, Warren A. Brown, questioned whether Wilson's death is related to Spain's case.

"Most people are going to believe his death was related to being a witness in the case," Brown said. "That is not necessarily true."

Brown said Wilson's death "seems like a death knell for the state's case," but said prosecutors might still proceed with it.

"They may try to force a round peg into a square hole," Brown said. "I'm not sure what they'll do."

Officials said that when Wilson picked Spain out of the lineup, the city offered to put Wilson in the witness protection program but that he declined.

This is the second high-profile shooting case in recent weeks that has been undermined by witness problems. Late last month, prosecutors dropped a murder charge against Nathaniel Fedd, who was accused of killing scholar-athlete Rio-Jarrell Tatum in May. The witnesses in the case proved unreliable, prosecutors said.

Wilson's killing also comes at a time when the city is still reeling from the deaths of seven members of the Dawson family. They were killed in an arson fire at their East Baltimore home last month that police say was set in retaliation for the Dawsons speaking out against neighborhood drug dealers.

Spain is charged with nine criminal counts in the July shooting, including attempted first-degree murder, which can carry a life sentence.

Tevin's wounding caused a public outcry against street violence, and city officials pointed to it as a symbol of how children are victimized by lawless gunmen.

Release sparked outcry

Spain, who had been described as a former friend of the 10-year old who occasionally bought him sodas and candy bars, is charged with inadvertently shooting the boy during a gunfight over a craps game, police said. He was firing at some men who had just driven up in a car and shot at the dice players, according to police.

After Spain was released on bond just days after the shooting, he returned to the neighborhood where he lived 12 doors away from Tevin. At the bail hearing, no prosecutor showed up to argue for a higher bail.

Immediately, Mayor Martin O'Malley publicly criticized the judge and the state's attorney's office, saying the system had failed to take the necessary steps to preserve community safety.