Witness Changes Testimony in A Homicide

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A witness testified that a co-defendant in a homicide case is not guilty before DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo, after admitting to lying in previous testimony in a hearing on Oct. 8.

Eugene Burns, 32, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, carrying a pistol without a license, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for his alleged involvement in the Nov. 14, 2015, fatal shooting of 24-year-old Onyekachi Emmanuel Osuchukwu III on the 2900 block of Second Street, SE.

Burns was convicted of these charges in 2017, but the DC Court of Appeals overturned the verdict in 2020. The court ruled that investigators had searched beyond what was legally allowed.

Burns and Tyre Allen, 24, are also charged with conspiracy, obstructing justice by influencing or delaying a witness or officer, and obstruction of justice for their alleged attempts to persuade a witness to redact testimony from Burns’ first trial.

The prosecution called Allen’s brother to the stand to continue his testimony. He previously identified himself as also Burns’ cousin.

Brandon Burrel, Allen’s attorney, asked whether Allen bribed, coerced, or intimidated him, to which the brother replied no. He stated, “his verdict should be not guilty,” referring to Allen.

“You lied about your testimony, isn’t that right?”, Rosemary Szanyi, Burns’ attorney, asked the witness. She revealed that his initial testimony in 2020 was a lie and he agreed. After being shown an affidavit created in 2020 he said, “the affidavit is not the truth… the truth is the trial in 2017, and now.”

According to the witness, he signed the affidavit in the presence of the detective, a notary, and Burns’ defense attorney. “Those are not my statements, but I signed the affidavit,” he said, adding that he only had about 30 seconds to read through the document.

During his testimony, he confessed that the initial $25,000 reward for information about the case motivated him to contact law enforcement, saying, “I only cared about the money.” He explained his circumstances of jumping from house-to-house and being unemployed with a newborn.

In his direct, he recounted a conversation with Burns, where he relayed that Allen had been taken into custody for failing to appear for a grand jury. “All you got to do is stick to your story” about who was responsible, Burns told Allen’s brother, emphasizing his right to remain silent.

Burrell also questioned the witness about his mental health condition. Burell asked about auditory hallucinations that doctors noted down, but the witness clarified that he only heard his own thoughts and consciousness during the events surrounding Osuchukwu’s death. He asserted that doctors exaggerated his conditions.

The prosecution also called a special agent from the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).

The FBI special agent worked on the cellular analysis team (CAST). His knowledge in historical cell phone records helped explain Burns’ phone calls right before the shooting on Nov. 14, 2015.

Burns’ phone data and calls were consistent with a route towards the scene of the crime, according to the agent.

Parties are slated to reconvene Oct. 9.