Defense attorney Kevin Mosley requested that a homicide defendant’s 24-hour home confinement be lifted in a hearing before DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan on Dec. 1.
Wayne Blake, 24, is charged with first-degree murder of a victim who was especially vulnerable due to age or physical infirmity and two counts of cruelty to children for his alleged involvement in the fatal beating of 18-month-old Journee Moore, on Sept. 28, 2024 on the 3700 block of Connecticut Avenue, NW.
At the hearing, Mosely entered a plea of not guilty to the charges on Blake’s behalf. Additionally, Mosely requested that all of the prosecution’s discovered evidence be provided to the defense.
The prosecution stated that all the information had been sent to the defense except grand jury testimony from a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective.
Additionally, Mosley discussed the conditions of Blake’s release and he argued that there has been no issues of curfew violations or rearrests. A Pretrial Service Agency (PSA) representative, who was virtually present, supported Mosley’s argument, stating that Blake had been in compliance with his conditions of release, and there were no violations from his stay-away order.
Mosley explained that Blake needs to find employment. “Mr. Blake was working for DoorDash, but he needs a full-time job to be able to provide for his family,” Mosley stated.
The prosecution opposed Blake the request arguing that “these are very serious charges. He is not supposed to be around children, and working for DoorDash means he is going to different homes, which means he could potentially be around children.”
Mosley argued that the stay-away order is “overbroad.”
“This is not a case where he [Blake] has a history of abusing children. This seems to be an incident where he was taking care of a specific child that they knew. He is presumed to be innocent,” Mosley said.
Judge Ryan agreed with the prosecution that Blake working for DoorDash is conflicting because he could potentially come in contact with children, but said he should be able to attend job interviews and get a full-time job.
“I’m willing to say that Mr. Blake should be allowed out of the house for targeted attempts to find a job as long as he verifies with his pretrial representative where he is going, “Judge Ryan said.
Judge Ryan authorized Blake to look for employment on weekdays from 9 a. m.-to-12 p. m.
Parties are slated to reconvene on April 3, 2026.
