Judge Only Sees One-Third of the Defendants Scheduled for Hearings

By D.C. Witness Staff - October 26, 2020
Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects |

A DC Superior Court judge presided over 12 pretrial and probation show cause hearings on Oct. 26. She issued eight bench warrants for the arrests of defendants who did not show up to court. 

April Boller was one of those defendants. She is charged with a bail violation and receiving stolen property. 

Defense attorney Angela Ramsay said she has not been able to get in touch with her 43-year-old client. 

Anita Leigh is charged with bail violation in a 2019 case as well as simple assault and second-degree theft in a 2017 case. She also did not show up to court.

Multiple notices of non-compliance and bench warrants have been issued over the last three years, and she has been deemed a loss of contact.

Leonard Jonson was scheduled for a pretrial show cause hearing regarding two 2019 cases. He is charged with possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and no permit.

Defense attorney Ralph Robinson said Johnson, 27, is currently incarcerated in Maryland for two pending cases and therefore could not appear in court.

Kdyn (pronounced kay-den) Waller is charged with disorderly conduct and unlawful entry in two 2019 cases.

The prosecutor requested a bench warrant after he failed to appear in court, saying that there were a “string of arrests listed in the PSA report.” The Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) has deemed Waller, 27, a loss of contact since earlier this year.

Judge Danya Dayson agreed that a bench warrant was the best course of action.

Roland Ford is on probation for simple assault in a case that dates back to 2018. He also failed to appear in court. 

The PSA said that Ford, 44, had not been in contact with them since March of this year. His defense attorney, Carl Messineo, also had not heard from his client.

A defendant charged with misdemeanor sex abuse of a child or minor failed to appear for his pretiral show cause hearing. 

The defendant’s attorney, Thomas Key, had not heard from his client. 

Judge Dayson cited arrests the defendant had for driving under the influence (DUI), assault on a police officer, and bail violation, as contributing to her decision to issue a bench warrant.

Donald Lewis, who is charged with simple assault, also failed to appear in court.

The PSA deemed Lewis, 55, a loss of contact on Sept. 28. However, he has had no new arrests. 

The prosecution requested a bench warrant, as the defendant may not be aware of the dates in his cases, and this may be the only way for the court to reach him. Judge Dayson granted the request.

Tyshawn Simms is charged with carrying a pistol without a license outside of a home or business, and distribution of a controlled substance. 

The Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) told Judge Dayson that Simms, 22, had been deemed  a loss of contact since Sept. 28. However, they simply requested that Simms regain compliance by checking in with his case manager as deemed appropriate after his release. 

Judge Dayson ordered Simms check in with PSA immediately, and discharged the hearing.

On Aug. 6 undercover officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), witnessed the defendant in what appeared to be an alleged drug exchange. MPD allegedly found a firearm and narcotics in a backpack that had been in possession of the defendant. According to court documents, MPD discovered Simms had pleaded guilty to a previous gun charge, and did not have a valid permit to carry the firearm.

Kevin Jackson entered into a plea agreement for a misdemeanor charge of drug possession. Jackson, 46, was allegedly found to be in possession of PCP on Aug. 22, 2019, after MPD arrived at his apartment for a welfare check. 

During Jackson’s status hearing on Oct. 26, both the prosecutor and defense attorney Kevin Robertson, agreed that sentencing Jackson to time served was appropriate. Judge Dayson agreed, noting that Jackson had not been rearrested during the last year, and his criminal history was limited.

Jackson was ordered to pay $50 to the Victims of Violent Crime fund.

Donald Allen walked into the courtroom for a probation show cause hearing. Allen, 63, was deemed a loss of contact earlier in the year, however during his probation show cause hearing on Oct. 26, a representative from the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA) clarified that the agency was contacted by Allen’s case manager on Aug. 12. According to the representative, the case manager said Allen had been receiving treatment from MBI Health Services. Since that notification was received, Allen has been in compliance with CSOSA. 

CSOSA requested the show cause hearing be discharged. Judge Dayson agreed it was appropriate.

Allen is currently on probation for a robbery charge from 2019.

Lontez Williams is currently on probation for a 2018 case. The charges in that case were assault with a deadly weapon and assault with intent to kill while armed.

While on probation, Williams was rearrested twice: once in DC and most recently in Maryland. He was released in both matters, and has been reporting consistently to CSOSA.

Defense attorney Lee Goebes requested that his client’s probation be terminated on the grounds that he us unaware of how long the defendant’s case in Maryland will take to go to trial. Judge Dayson immediately denied that request, saying she is concerned with the nature of crime in his most recent arrest. 

Goebes then requested that the stay away order in his client’s 2018 case be revoked in favor of a no harassment, assault, threaten or stalk (HATS) be served instead. 

Judge Dayson granted the request and continued the hearing to Jan. 26.