DC Superior Court Judge Neal Kravitz heard opening arguments in which parties disputed if a fatal shooting was self-defense in a trial on Feb. 5.
Khalid Claggett, 41, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, second-degree murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence , and unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction greater than a year. All charges face an aggravating factor of allegedly being committed during Claggett’s release for another offense. The charges stem from his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 30-year-old Isaac Aull Jr. on June 11, 2021 on the 1600 block of Franklin Street, NE.
In their opening statement, the prosecution argued, “an execution is not self-defense, this was an execution.” They alleged that Claggett murdered Aull while he was “unarmed and exposed,” laying crumpled on the ground. According to prosecutors, Aull shot at Claggett in the parking lot of a Walgreens, Claggett then “returned fire” and chased after Aull, after Aull stopped shooting.
The prosecutors said Claggett left the scene and returned wearing new clothes and with a different gun. Aull was lying in the street with wounds from a 9 mm gun, when Claggett returned to “execute him” and “finish him off,” prosecutors alleged.
Claggett’s defense attorney, Howard McEachern, argued that Aull’s murder was a result of self-defense. He explained that the jurors would see Aull shooting at Claggett in the parking lot, with no altercation of any kind occurring beforehand.
McEachern alleged that Clagett was “ambushed with gun fire” in the middle of the day. The real question was why the shooting happened, McEachern said. He argued that it was “kill or be killed” and that Claggett had a “fear for his life.”
After opening statements, Aull’s mother testified that she attended a hearing for the murder of her other son with Aull the day he was killed. She described Aull as “kind, silly, and a protector.”
The first Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer to arrive on scene testified that she saw a person laying on the ground and bleeding profusely. She explained that the person on the ground had “no signs of life” and did not move.
When cross-examined by McEachern, the officer said she did not know how long the victim had been in the street and was not present at the Walgreens when the first shots were fired.
An eyewitness testified that she called 911 after seeing a young man laying in the street. The prosecutors confirmed that when she first called the police the victim was still alive. The eyewitness also said that she saw a man come from behind a parked ambulance and shoot the injured man in the street. According to the eyewitness, the victim did not have anything in his hand when he was shot.
In her 911 call, the eyewitness said “he’s dead now” after she saw someone shooting the injured man.
A paramedic, whose ambulance dashboard camera caught the incident, testified that she saw the victim crawling on the ground, holding his leg. Moments later, she said the shooter returned, stood above the victim, and shot at him multiple times.
Another eyewitness said he was driving down Rhode Island Avenue when he saw the shooting. He said he saw the shooter in an “isosceles triangular] stance,” with his feet shoulder width apart, arms straight out holding the gun, and the gun brought up to eye level. The eyewitness testified that he saw the shooter in this stance for several moments as he heard gunshots.
Another eyewitness was a Special Police Officer (SPO) working security at the Walgreens. The SPO testified that he was in his car in the parking lot when the shooting began. He said he heard multiple rounds of gunshots, but did not actually see the shooter because he ducked down for safety.
Parties are slated to reconvene on Feb. 9.
