Ex-Partner Testifies Against Defendant in 2018 Murder Trial

By Jai Bajaj [former] - November 27, 2023
Daily Stories | Homicides | stabbing | Suspects | Victims |

On Nov. 27, an ex-partner of a homicide defendant testified against him in a 2018 murder trial in front of DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt.

Marquette Jordan, 32, is charged with second-degree murder while armed, assault, and carrying a dangerous weapon outside of a home or business with a prior felony, for his alleged connection to the fatal stabbing of 40-year-old Ivan Lynch on April 30, 2018 at the 900 block of 5th Street, SE.

Jordan was previously tried on the charges in April of 2022 but the jury was unable to reach a verdict.

A witness who identified herself as Jordan’s ex-partner testified in court, stating she was present when the murder took place.

According to the witness, she was dealing with homelessness and was staying off and on with a friend around the time of the murder. The friend she was staying with was Lynch’s friend. 

She also mentioned that she shared a romantic relationship with Jordan around the same time period.

According to the witness,  Lynch picked her up along with Jordan and her two children, ages one and four, to take them to the friend’s apartment where she was planning on spending the night. During her testimony, she recalled that Jordan and Lynch were arguing in the car.

She said that, upon arriving at the apartment, Lynch was going to leave. As Lynch was about to head out, Jordan said he forgot something in the car and he and Lynch went outside for about 20 minutes.

According to the witness, when they came back, Jordan was noticeably angry. She said he began threatening her in front of her two children and the argument became physical. Jordan went towards the witness and then Lynch then tried to intervene; then Jordan began to fight him. She said Jordan was trying to fight while Lynch was trying to wrestle him down.

In her testimony, she mentioned she saw Jordan with a knife and saw him make stabbing motions at Lynch. She said Lynch fell to his knees and then backwards towards the fridge, Jordan looked at her and said, “B**ch, you could die too.”

According to the witness, she then fled the apartment with a pillow she was using to protect herself and hid under a car, where she fell asleep. She then went back to the apartment to get her children and was escorted by a security guard because there was a large police presence. Her children had been removed and she was taken to the police station.

The prosecution then showed video from the interview she had with a detective early the next morning. In the video she recounted the same events she described in court.

According to the witness, on the day after the murder, she went to Lynch’s family’s house and told them that Jordan was responsible for Lynch’s death.

A few weeks later she and Jordan began talking again. She said Jordan proposed marriage; he said it was so she couldn’t testify against him in court.

In cross examination, Jordan’s defense attorney, Camille Wagner, questioned the witness about car ride before the incident, and the witness said that everyone in the car had been drinking and they were going to keep the party going at the apartment.

Wagner also asked her about why she didn’t seek help when she left the apartment after the stabbing, noting a Marine Baracks across the street with armed guards. 

The witness said when she was under the car she saw police were already helping. 

Wagner asked whether the witness told the detective what they wanted to hear in order to see her children, to which she responded, “Yes.” 

Wagner also inquired about the proposal, and the witness disclosed that she initially agreed to marry Jordan.

Due to time constraints, the witness was unable to finish her testimony and will continue on Nov. 28.