Silver Spring man sentenced to prison for nearly beating landlord to death with table leg

SILVER SPRING, Md. — A Silver Spring man is heading to prison for a near-deadly attack on his landlord.

After the case was tried three times, Geofrey Gaitan, 31, was eventually sentenced to 27 years in prison and five years of supervised probation after his release. 

On April 24, a jury found Gaitan guilty of second-degree attempted murder. He was sentenced several months later.

Investigators say his charges stem from an attack on April 19, 2020 at his home on Hastings Drive in Silver Spring. Gaitan got into an argument over rent and severely beat his then 63-year-old landlord, hitting him several times with two wooden table legs and stomping on his head after he fell to the ground. 

His landlord suffered multiple skull fractures and permanent, traumatic brain injury.

Gaitan was convicted after a third jury trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court. The two trials before ended with a hung jury, which occurs when the jurors in a trial cannot reach a unanimous decision or a required majority verdict. When a jury is hung, the judge may declare a mistrial. The case may then be retried with a new jury if the prosecution decides to pursue it further, which the state decided to do.

Assistant State’s Attorneys Jennifer Harrison and Teresa Casafranca handled the prosecution of this case.

“Our dedicated attorneys remained committed to seeking justice for this victim and his family. This was an unprovoked attack on an innocent man and the defendant will now be held accountable,” said State’s Attorney John McCarthy.