‘The Man Is Dying in Front of You,’ Defense Argues against Using Video in Trial

By Laura Berol - October 22, 2024
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

An attorney for a homicide defendant argued that photos and a video the prosecution planned to use in trial were too upsetting to show to a jury in a hearing before DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan on Oct. 18.

Rafeal Stevens, 39, and Jermall Johnson, 41, are charged with first-degree murder, two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, three counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convict. The charges stem from their alleged involvement in the shooting death of Aniekobo Umoh, 50, on Dec. 29, 2022, on the 2700 block of 7th Street, NE.

Stevens’ attorney, Jason Tulley, told the court some of the prosecution’s evidence would influence the jury emotionally without doing anything to prove Stevens’ guilt.

“It spurs the emotion, ‘Oh my god, this poor gentleman, I feel so sorry for him,” Tulley said about a photo of Umoh’s face taken during his autopsy.

Tulley also objected to a close-up photo of an exit wound that showed pink internal tissue and a photo of Umoh, while alive, with his young nephew.

“We all know what’s going on,” Tulley said. “They [the prosecutors] put up photos of them [the victims] with their loved ones to create an emotional response, so the jury is more likely to convict, not based on any evidence.”

“We’re not required to curtail our evidence on the grounds that it makes people feel sad,” the prosecution argued. “We’ve really culled down the shots that we use. We only use sanitized, bloodless photos.”

Judge Raffinan denied Tulley’s motions to exclude the photos from evidence. She said they were relevant for identifying the victim, communicating who he was as a person, and demonstrating his injuries without being gory or unnecessarily prejudicial.

Tulley asked Judge Raffinan to order the prosecution to redact sections of the body-worn camera footage they planned to show the jury from the officer who discovered Umoh.

“The man is dying in front of you. He’s literally dying on this body-worn camera. It’s awful,” Tulley said. “It could have two effects. One, it could make the jurors angry and want to hold someone accountable, and two, it could make the jurors unable to continue with the trial, and we’d lose jurors.”

Judge Raffinan said she would make a ruling after Tulley identified the specific portions of the video he wants redacted.

Johnson’s defense attorney, Steven LoGerfo, asked Judge Raffinan to sever Stevens’ and Johnson’s cases so they could have separate trials. 

Judge Raffinan granted the motion for severance. 

She said co-defendants are usually tried together to save the time and effort of the court and the prosecution, but they may be tried separately if one can give testimony that is exculpatory to the other.

According to Judge Raffinan, the prosecution plans to argue Stevens and Johnson conspired to murder Umoh, but Stevens has agreed to testify in Johnson’s trial that there was no conspiracy between them.

The next hearing in Stevens’ case is scheduled for Oct. 28.

In Johnson’s case, the next hearing is set for Dec. 3.