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By
D.C. Witness Staff
- May 24, 2019
Court
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Daily Stories
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Homicides
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Suspects
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During a murder trial May 23, a witness for the prosecution told the jury that moments after he saw the defendant with a gun, he heard gunshots and saw the victim collapse.
Kenneth Bellamy is charged with first-degree murder while armed and two gun-related offenses for allegedly shooting 23-year-old Michael Tyrone Jones on the 3500 block of East Capital Street, SE in 2015.
The witness said that on the night of the murder he was standing in the entryway of a building on East Capital Street with multiple other people when he saw Bellamy, 35, confront Jones about stolen marijuana. The witness said Jones had been bragging earlier in the day about marijuana.
The witness said Bellamy approached Jones, saying “Where that shit at.”
The witness said Bellamy’s hands were in his jacket pockets and that he could see the outline of a gun. He said shortly after the two exchanged words, Bellamy grabbed Jones and they began to “tussle.”
The witness said he saw Bellamy pull something that seemed like a gun out of his pocket. The witness said he started running away when he heard gunshots. He said he didn’t see anyone else with a gun.
However, during cross examination, the defense pointed out that the witness told police multiple versions of the story.
The witness told defense attorney, Jon Norris, that he initially lied to police because he was trying to protect himself. However, Norris refuted the claim, saying the witness was lying to protect someone else.
According to Norris, the witness testified in a grand jury that the person who shot Jones was the same person who sold him marijuana earlier that day. Norris said the witness was protecting the true shooter because if he implicated the shooter he would be implicating himself.
During opening arguments, the defense said the witness set Jones up to be robbed and killed. Apparently, Jones was a known drug dealer and had been bragging earlier in the day about drugs that he acquired. Norris said the witness and the true shooter conspired together.
The defense is scheduled to continue with their cross examination on May 28.