DC Superior Court Judge Neal Kravitz allowed the prosecution time to determine how they will proceed in a stabbing case on May 22 after an appellate court overturned the defendant’s conviction.
A jury convicted Onzay Gibbs, 36, on May 22, 2018 of assault with intent to kill while armed and aggravated assault knowingly while armed for his alleged involvement in a stabbing on Sept. 15, 2016 on the 3300 block of 23rd Street, SE. The victim sustained multiple sharp force injuries to his face, neck, and body that required emergency surgery.
DC Superior Court Judge Ronna Beck sentenced Gibbs to 20 years in prison on Dec. 14, 2018.
A mandate from the DC Court of Appeals, filed on May 15, reversed the trial court’s denial of Gibbs’ motion to suppress evidence obtained from a search of his cell phone. The appellate court found the search violated Gibbs’ constitutional rights and therefore vacated his conviction because prosecutors presented the evidence at trial.
The appellate court based its decision on Burns v. United States (2020), a DC Court of Appeals ruling that established warrants for cell phone searches must establish probable cause for narrow, specific data, not an unlimited review of the contents.
At the hearing, Judge Kravitz acknowledged that the prosecutor, and Gibbs’ attorney, Terrence Austin, were both recently appointed to the case. The prosecutor said she was assigned the case the day prior and asked for two weeks to determine whether the case could proceed without the cell phone evidence, or if some evidence would remain admissible under the Burns case.
Austin noted that Gibbs was not present for the hearing because he was in custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) but indicated he will likely file a motion requesting Gibbs release to argue at the next hearing.
The parties are scheduled to reconvene on June 4.
