After Being Confined for 7 Years, Judge Reschedules Trial Date for Murder Defendant

By Ashley Brown [former] - October 11, 2022
Appeal | Court | Daily Stories | Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

DC Superior Court Judge Robert Okun set a new trial date for a murder defendant who has spent 7 years in pretrial confinement.

Stanley Moghalu, 35, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in connection to the shooting of 27-year-old Ronald Smith on Nov. 14, 2011, alongside the 2000 block of M Street, NE. Smith was a witness for a 2011 homicide. In 2017, Moghalu was convicted by a jury on 11 charges, and sentenced to 75-and-half years in prison. He appealed the ruling in 2018, and won in 2021, reopening the case.

During an Oct. 7 hearing, his defense attorneys, Thomas Healy and Jonathan Zucker, sought to reschedule his trial to a sooner date, characterizing his 7 year stint in pretrial confinement as an “untenable stay.”

Zucker expressed sympathy for his client, saying, “I am very apologetic to Moghalu.”

Judge Okun coordinated with counsel to schedule a new trial date, which is now expected to occur in September of 2023.

Parties must reconvene on June 15, 2023, with motion and expert notices. Responses are due on July 15, 2023, prior to trial.

The trial is scheduled for Sept. 11, 2023.