Judge Finds Probable Cause During Hearing

By D.C. Witness Staff - October 21, 2020
Daily Stories | Uncategorized |

On Oct. 21, a DC Superior Court Judge held one defendant and released the other during a preliminary hearing.

Judge Renee Raymond found enough evidence to charge Lamar Jones, 27, with armed robbery. Burke Davis, 25, the other defendant involved in the case, was released.

According to court documents, Davis and Jones approached the victim on the 1800 block of Corcoran Street, NE. Davis demanded the victim to hand over whatever he had on him. He refused to do so and was then shot in the leg by Jones. After being shot, the victim handed Davis two twenty-dollar bills.

During the hearing, a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Detective in charge of the case identified Jones in the video footage from a body-worn camera.

The footage showed the victim approaching the officer, saying he had been shot and pointed toward a white vehicle that he saw Jones got in. The officers approached the car, and the defendants stepped out, documents state. The victim identified Jones as the person who robbed and shot him.

The footage also revealed the officers found a firearm on Davis in his pants waistband.

The MPD detective said that the pistol found on Davis was a .357 caliber and could not have been the gun used in the armed robbery case since the bullet that was found is a .45 caliber. The detective asked professionals whether a .45 caliber bullet could be used with .357 caliber guns. They said no, it could not.

During cross-examination, Davis’s defense attorney Leo Alley confirmed with the detective that Jones acted alone in the robbery.

The victim, who was involved in the case, reiterated  that Jones was the only one who approached him during the robbery.

“ Are there any other statements that Mr. Davis was involved in the robbery or shooting?” Alley asked

“No,” replied the MPD detective.

Jones’s attorney Stephen Logerfo tried to argue not to find probable cause regarding Jones since there was no firearm found on him.

Judge Raymond took everything into account for Davis and found no probable cause for the armed robbery charge.

“The gerstein is fatally flawed, and the only probable cause I find for Mr. Davis is carrying a  pistol without a license. It’s pretty clear that there is no probable cause when it comes to Mr. Davis. There is nothing on the record saying that he was involved in any shape or form,” Judge Raymond said.

Davis, who is in the High Intensity Supervision Program (HISP), was released.

Judge Raymond found probable cause for Jones, who was the one who approached and shot the victim. Due to the defendant’s past crimes, including an attempted robbery in 2012, Judge Raymond decided to hold him at the DC jail without bail.

A status hearing is set for the defendants on Nov. 19.

This article was written by Emily Pengelly