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By
D.C. Witness Staff
- August 10, 2020
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A DC Superior Court judge released a defendant charged with simple assault.
On May 24, Wendell Clay, 40, allegedly assaulted a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer. The officer asked him to leave a basketball court on the 1600 block of 30th Street, SE due to COVID-19 and the Mayor’s Order in place.
During the Aug. 7 hearing, the prosecution screened an Instagram video showing Clay pushing the officer onto the ground before punching him in the face.
Clay said during the hearing that the officer first pushed him when being approached, prompting him to act in self defense. He said he felt “agitated” because the officer was not trying to disperse a group of people who were playing tennis nearby.
Defense attorney Kevin Robertson said the officer’s actions could not be seen in the video.
The prosecution asked that Clay be held at the DC Jail due to his extensive criminal history.
However, Robertson responded by saying that his client has already been detained for 76 days.
“He can’t sit in the DC Jail waiting for court dates that do not yet exist,” he said.
Judge O’Keefe decided to release the defendant with GPS monitoring. He also said he wanted to give the defendant some time to address a case he picked up in Maryland.