Murder Defendant Heads to Trial After Rejecting Plea

By D.C. Witness Staff - April 18, 2019
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects | Uncategorized |

After rejecting a plea deal from the prosecution, a murder defendant heads to trial.

Hakeem Burroughs is charged with first-degree murder while armed for allegedly shooting 22-year-old Jarell Walker on the 3700 block of Hayes Street, NE on June 2, 2016.

During a court proceeding April 17, Burroughs, 27, told DC Superior Court Judge Juliet McKenna that he was rejecting the prosecution’s plea deal.  According to the prosecution, the plea would have carried a 6-year credit for time served in conjunction with a five-year sentence on top of any jail time he received for other convictions in Maryland and the District. Counsel said a charge was not specified.

After the plea was rejected, the hearing moved to a discussion of the case’s outstanding motions for the trial.

On April 10, the defense filed several motions, including a motion to suppress the defendant’s cell phone and cell data from the trial, saying that the phone was seized unlawfully because Burroughs’ did not consent and a warrant was not issued.

The phone was obtained, by the police, from the scene of a crime on June 13, 2016, after Burroughs was shot. Apparently, authorities retrieved his phone from his jeans which were left on the scene.

According to a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective, Burroughs was placed on the department’s radar for the homicide after he was shot. The detective said that a warrant had not been submitted for Burroughs’ arrest on or before June 13.

Because MPD did not arrest Burroughs on or before the day he was shot, the defense argued that authorities unlawfully held his phone. Counsel said the phone was initially labeled as personal property but was not released to Burroughs or any representative on his defense team.

Judge McKenna denied the defense’s motion to suppress Burroughs cell phone and cell data from the trial, saying that, according to testimony from a forensic scientist at the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences, the phone was placed into police custody as evidence for the June 13 shooting.

Burroughs was arrested for Walker’s homicide on June 24, 2016.

Judge McKenna also said that since the phone was initially logged as evidence, it would not have been released to anyone. Because the phone was already in police custody, any information that was obtained for evidence in another case, was legal.

In addition to denying the motion to suppress the defendant’s cell phone and cell data, Judge McKenna also denied a motion to suppress an eyewitness’s identification of the shooter, a motion to suppress information from Burroughs’ GPS monitor and a motion to remove Burroughs’ prior convictions from the felony charge.

The judge said that any prior acts of violence from witnesses could not be discussed during trial unless Burroughs had knowledge of those acts. According to the judge, there will be limitations on how counsel can refer to the previous convictions by the defendant and the witnesses.

Jury selection for the trial is scheduled to be conducted in open court on April 18.