A homicide defendant once again failed to appear before DC Superior Court Judge Neal Kravitz on Sept. 26, further delaying a case that has been ongoing for more than six years.
Mark Price, 30, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, threat to injure or kidnap a person, four counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm by a convict and first-degree burglary while armed.
Price’s charges are connected to the fatal shooting of 47-year-old Andrew Hakim Young on July 30, 2019, on the 1500 block of 19th Street, NE.
Price was previously sentenced to 50 years of imprisonment for a widely reported mass shooting on the 5300 block of 53rd Street, NE, on July 16, 2018 which killed ten-year-old Makiyah Wilson, and left four other individuals with gunshot wounds.
On March 14, Price similarly failed to appear in court before Judge Kravitz. In March, Price had told his attorney, Destiny Fullwood-Singh, that he was not feeling well and refused to get on the bus from DC Jail to court.
On Sept. 26, Fullwood-Singh said she spoke to Price the night before, and suspected he may fail to appear in court again. She told Judge Kravitz that Price was refusing to subject himself to what he termed the inhumane treatment that inmates are subjected to when they appear in court, and therefore would not get off the bus that brought him from the jail to court.
Judge Kravtiz noted that Price had not yet waived his right to appear in court, and gave Price one more opportunity to appear in court at the next status hearing.
Judge Kravitz warned that if Price fails to appear again, Judge Kravitz and both parties, as well as a court reporter, would need to visit Price in his cellblock to waive his right to appear in court in order to move forward with the case.
Parties are slated to reconvene on Nov. 14.
