4 Defendants Held During Initial Hearings, Including Murder Defendant

By D.C. Witness Staff - October 31, 2020
Featured | Homicides | Suspects |

A DC Superior Court judge chose to hold four out of 20 defendants presented for their initial hearings on Oct. 31. 

The first defendant held was 23-year-old James Flemings, who is being charged with first-degree murder while armed. 

On Oct. 6, Flemings allegedly shot Michael Bright while he and another suspect tried to rob a victim on the 4500 block of Lee Street, NE. 

Fleming’s co-defendant, Delonte Samuel, has already been arrested by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). 

Judge Juliet McKenna held Flemings since she could not guarantee the safety of the community if he was released. 

Another defendant is charged with second-degree cruelty to children, possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device, unlawful possession of ammunition and simple assault in a domestic violence case. 

Judge McKenna chose to hold the 26-year-old defendant since he has a previous robbery conviction and is currently on pretrial release for another matter. In this case, the defendant allegedly pointed a firearm at the victim’s head, so Judge McKenna feared for the safety of the victim if he was released. 

Derrick Freeman, 40, is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction and unlawful possession of PCP. 

When MPD officers stopped Freeman, they allegedly discovered a stolen firearm, liquid PCP, cocaine and contents of a stolen wallet on his person. 

Freeman was previously charged with distribution of a controlled substance in April of 2019, and he has had multiple rearrests since then. 

Due to his criminal history, Judge McKenna ordered Freeman to be held in DC Jail pending his next hearing on Nov. 19. 

The last defendant held was Walter Gibbs, 28, who is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction, and he is a fugitive from Maryland for an assault charge. 

While Gibbs was released on the fugitive matter, he was held for the new firearm charge due to his prior convictions. 

Judge McKenna released five domestic violence defendants. Four of these defendants were released with stay away orders, while one defendant was released on the order not to harass, assault, threaten or stalk (HATS) the victim. 

One defendant, charged with carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business, was also released due to his limited and dated prior criminal history. 

Two fugitive defendants were also released on the condition that they go to the county in Maryland that issued the warrants for their arrest. One is charged with simple assault and the other with a probation violation for a burglary conviction. 

Judge McKenna released seven misdemeanor defendants who had been charged with assault, unlawful entry onto private property, possession of a controlled substance, attempted possession of a prohibited weapon or second-degree theft. 

One traffic defendant charged with driving under the influence, operating a vehicle while impaired and driving without a permit was also released with orders not to drive after consuming alcohol or drugs.

This article was written by Sierra Robbins