An eyewitness to a 13-year-old boy’s murder testified during a trial before DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt on Sept. 10.
Reginald Steele, 26, is charged with conspiracy, first-degree murder, 10 counts of assault with intent to kill while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, 11 counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, four counts of carrying a pistol without a license, five counts of possession of an unregistered firearm, and two counts of tampering with physical evidence.
These charges stem from Steele’s alleged involvement in four separate shootings including the murder of 13-year-old Malachi Lukes and injury of another juvenile on March 1, 2020, on the 600 block of S Street, NW. Steele’s accused of a separate shooting the same day with no reported injuries on the unit block of Channing Street, NE.
The other incidents Steele is accused of include a non-fatal shooting that injured two individuals on Feb. 22, 2020 on the 700 block of Farragut Street, NW, and a non-fatal shooting that injured three on Feb. 24, 2020 on the 1700 block of 9th Street, NW.
During the second week of Steele’s trial, prosecutors called an eyewitness to Lukes’ murder to testify. Around 2 p. m. on March 1, the witness recalled driving home from church when two men exited the car in front of her and shot into a crowd of boys in an alley. According to the witness, both shooters immediately extended their arms with guns as they exited the car.
“It was like a clown car,” said the witness. She described the men as large in comparison to the vehicle and said they folded themselves to get back in after the shooting.
Following the shooting, the eyewitness said she followed the suspects in an attempt to photograph their license plate, but could not unlock her phone in time. However, she recalled the vehicle as a small tan brown four-door hatchback with a Maryland license plate.
Jurors heard the 911 call from the eyewitness minutes after the shooting in which she said “They opened the doors and they just started shooting…I’ve never seen anything like that in my life.” She continued in disbelief, “Oh my, God…this stuff happens on TV.”
The eyewitness confirmed with prosecutors that no obstructions blocked her view of the shooters. She described them as male because of their build and race as Black or brown but clarified that she only had a clear view of the shooter that exited from the back of the vehicle because he was closest to her.
Megan Allburn, Steele’s attorney, questioned the distance between the witness and the suspect vehicle, which the witness described as one car-length. Next to the jury, Allburn stood about a car-length away, with her side-profile toward the witness. Allburn asked if the witness could see if she had facial hair or glasses and the witness confirmed that she had neither.
Prosecutors confirmed with the witness that the closer shooter wore a hoodie which is why she could not discern facial features.
The prosecution also called an investigator from the Metropolitan Police Department’s (MPD) electronic surveillance unit who recovered video evidence. The investigator gathered videos from a BP gas station on the 3400 block of Georgia Avenue, NW and from Trinity Towers on the 3000 block of 14th Street, NW.
The BP surveillance from March 1 at approximately 12:53 p. m. showed a silver four-door vehicle pull in front of the gas pumps. The investigator noted that two people exited from the front seats of the vehicle and entered the lobby of the BP. Then, they exited the gas station, got back into the car, and drove off.
Prosecutors noted the vehicle had markings on the back passenger-side panel.
The investigator said there were no dates or times on the Trinity Towers surveillance videos. In the videos, two men exited the building, one walked south on 14th Street and the other entered the driver’s side of a vehicle. The witness could not discern if it was the front or back of the car.
Gemma Stevens, Steele’s other attorney, noted that the investigator never checked the video time stamps to real time. The investigator also confirmed that he could not see into the car on the videos from either location.
A forensic scientist from the Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS) also testified who responded to the 500 block of Lamont Street, NW on March 4 and captured photos of a Kia Soul with a Maryland License plate. Prosecutors showed photos taken by the witness including a big sticker behind the rear passenger door that read “getaround.com”.
According to the forensic scientist and the photos, the Kia also had a damaged tailgate, blue tape holding up the passenger mirror, and two parking tickets on the windshield.
Parties are scheduled to continue the trial on Sept. 11.
