Brother Testifies He Tried, Failed to Wake Up Murder Victim

By Elizabeth Brady - November 13, 2024
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

The victim’s brother testified that at the crime scene, “I tried to wake him up but I couldn’t.” That remark came as the prosecution continued their homicide case in front of DC Superior Court Judge Robert Okun on Nov. 12.

Mark Beasley, 52 is charged with first-degree murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, assault with intent to kill while armed, and unlawful possession of a firearm for the fatal shooting of Darryn Conte on April 26, 2015, on the 6900 block of 4th Street, NW, outside a nightclub. One other individual sustained injuries.

Beasley was convicted and sentenced to 40 years of incarceration in 2017 and in 2019 the case was reopened after the defense appealed.

The victim’s brother said that the pair was at a nightclub enjoying a band as a friend performed and danced until the lights were turned on. He noted two men dancing around Conte, recalling, “It was kinda weird,” later identifying one of the men to be his brother’s alleged shooter. 

The group later separated – one party, including the victim, returned to a vehicle, and the other, including the witness, was not far behind. However, the group reunited after the shooting while the witness tried to save his brother.

The brother went to the police station for an interview, and later, the police brought the witness back to identify the suspect, and he allegedly picked Beasley out of a photo-array of nine “light-skinned bald” men, saying in court, that this was “the person who murdered my brother.”

The prosecution introduced a medical examiner who performed Conte’s autopsy and detailed how the bullets entered the victim. He described how many were “intermediary targets,” meaning the bullet must have passed through another object before hitting the victim, causing “atypical wounds.”

The expert noted the damage done to Conte’s body was “incompatible with life.” Toxicology reports showed that the victim had both alcohol and marijuana in his system. The coroner determined the cause of death to be a shooting, in the manner of a homicide. 

The last witness was a crime analyst who documented the damage done to the victim’s vehicle during the shooting. She observed extensive bullet holes and fragments, repeating “copper in color possible projectiles.” Most notably one of these projectiles went through the passenger’s headrest where the victim was seated during the incident. 

The parties are set to reconvene on Nov. 13.