DC Superior Court Judge Jason Park granted a prosecutor’s request to test footprint evidence from a 2005 homicide during a motion hearing on April 23.
Michael Wells, 54, is charged with premeditated first-degree murder while armed, second-degree murder while armed, two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, tampering with physical evidence, and arson. The charges stem from his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Makia Mosby on Nov. 24, 2005, on the 1200 block of Valley Avenue, SE.
Judge Park addressed a motion filed by the prosecution on April 15 requesting a court order for Wells to comply with having his footprint taken, so that it could be tested against a footprint found on a retail bag collected from the crime scene. The judge asked the prosecution why this motion was only being filed now and how long it would take for this testing to be conducted, since Wells’ trial is scheduled to begin on May 26.
The prosecution said that they initially missed the footprint information in the information provided by Wells’ attorneys, Molly Bunke and Hannah Claudio, but that the testing should be concluded within two weeks.
Claudio argued against the request, saying that the prosecution should have been more diligent in asking to test the evidence, and that this motion was filed too close to the trial. She asserted that missing the mention of the footprint on an initial read of the defense’s letter was not an appropriate excuse for the lateness of their request.
Judge Park agreed with Claudio’s position about when the motion was filed. The judge said that while he was inclined to allow the prosecution to test the footprint, he might not allow them to use it as evidence due to the proximity to trial.
The prosecution said that if the motion was granted, they could have Wells’ footprint taken after the hearing. Claudio and Bunke maintained their opposition to the motion, but said that if it was granted, they would not object to that as long as they could have an investigator observe the process.
Judge Park granted the motion and agreed with having the testing take place after the hearing.
Bunke briefly addressed some defense issues with additional evidence, particularly a cigarette lighter collected from the scene that had not yet been transported to the defense’s lab for testing. The prosecution explained that this issue was due to shipping problems acknowledged by an official from the United States Postal Service (USPS).
Bunke also said that she and Claudio were missing photographs from the crime scene, but the prosecution said that they had already sent all of the photos they had to the defense.
Judge Park acknowledged these issues and said hopefully parties could find a solution before the next hearing.
Parties are slated to reconvene on May 1.
