Parties opening statements clashed before a jury in DC Superior Court Judge Danya Dayson’s courtroom on Sept. 10.
Wali Shabazz, 51, is charged with second-degree murder while armed and carrying a dangerous weapon for his alleged involvement in the fatal stabbing of 41-year-old Martin Gross on April 27, 2024 on the 100 block of T Street, SW.
“You are here because of this gentleman,” the prosecution told the jury, showing them a picture of Gross.
“Mr. Shabazz got mad and he acted out,” the prosecution claimed. According to the prosecution, Shabazz and Gross worked as bike valets for Bike Valet DMV, and were on the job at Audi Field on the day of the incident. The prosecution stated Gross arrived an hour late to his shift, which caused frustration among his co-workers. “That was really the beginning of the end,” the prosecutor stated.
“Mr. Gross was being a jerk,” the prosecutor told the jury, adding “but that’s not a reason to kill him.”
Surveillance footage, presented to the court, showed that the individual identified as Gross “got in Shabazz’s face.” Due to the disruption, the prosecution claimed, the owner of the company was called and told Gross to go home.
“These two, the defendant and the victim, were acting like children,” the prosecution continued, stating Gross approached Shabazz again while he sat on a bench. “All of a sudden, it got extremely strange and violent,” the prosecutor insisted.
After Gross punched Shabazz, “Mr. Shabazz took a knife and slammed it down,” against Gross, before stabbing him multiple times as he lay on the ground.
“Nothing that serious had happened, until Mr. Shabazz decided to take out a knife,” the prosecutor asserted.
The prosecutor told jurors they should consider two things; first, “Did Mr. Shabazz actually believe he was in danger? Was that reasonable?” She further argued the force used by Shabazz was “excessive.”
Defense attorney Michelle Stevens disagreed with the prosecutor, stating “Mr. Shabazz is innocent… [he] acted as the law allows each and every one of us,” in self-defense.
According to Stevens, Shabazz believed Gross posed a threat to him. She highlighted Shabazz’s attempt to walk away after each interaction they had, but “Mr. Gross just kept coming. He was not going to stop.”
Stevens stated Gross antagonized Shabazz from the moment he arrived late to work by calling him the n-word and assaulting him multiple times by getting in his face and punching him. “[Shabazz] walked away multiple times. Mr. Gross just kept antagonizing him,” she asserted.
Shabazz, who Stevens claimed was “slimmer and smaller” than Gross, didn’t know if Gross was armed at the time of the incident and feared for his safety. “Nobody is helping Mr. Shabazz,” Stevens claimed.
“Mr. Shabazz lawfully defended himself,” she continued, adding his belief he’d suffer harm at Gross’ hands is “the heart of this case.” She urged the jury not to be distracted by emotional reactions aroused by the evidence, and suggested the only just verdict at the end of trial will be not guilty.
Parties are slated to reconvene Sept. 14.
