Two witnesses testified they were told by a defendant to claim to police she was the perpetrator of murder instead of the actual suspect in a proceeding before DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan on March 17.
Aillayh Carter, 29, is charged with two counts of obstructing justice of a witness or officer for allegedly attempting to influence two witnesses in a murder case.
Carter’s case was previously severed on Feb. 20 from her fiancé, Robert Carpenter, 37, who is charged with second-degree murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 42-year-old Tremaine Nicholson on May 7, 2024 on the 3400 block of 25th Street, SE.
According to the prosecution and court documents, Carter allegedly attempted to take responsibility for the murder.
A witness to the crime, who identified herself as Carter’s godmother the previous day in trial, testified that she told detectives that Carter committed the crime because Carter asked her to “tell them that I did it because that’s what I told them” during a phone call after the incident. One of Carter’s charges stems from allegedly attempting to influence her godmother.
“She will always be my goddaughter,” the witness said.
Carter’s attorney, Gregory Copeland, attempted to determine whether Carter and her godmother spoke before or after the godmother was initially interviewed by detectives. However, the godmother stated that she was unsure when exactly this conversation took place.
The godmother, who was getting her hair done by Carter at her apartment and the location of the offense, said that she did not witness the shooting but did see Nicholson enter the apartment “huffing and puffing” and asking where his son was. Nicholson was the father of Carter’s child.
The prosecution also called Carter’s godmother’s husband who was also present during the incident and Carter allegedly attempted to influence.
During questioning from the prosecution, the husband told the jury that Nicholson entered the apartment and demanded to see his son. With balled fists, said the husband, Nicholson paced back and forth repeating “I wanna see my son, I wanna see my f***ing son.” Their son was not in the apartment at that time, but Carter was “yelling historically for him to leave,” said the husband.
Subsequently, the husband said Nicholson lunged at Carter’s neck. “He was this close from choking her out,” the husband stated he saw before he heard gunshots.
He didn’t recall seeing any firearms before, during, or after the incident. When asked, he said he didn’t see who fired the shots because he was more concerned with his, and his wife’s, safety.
The husband said Carter told him “handle ya’ll business,” and “I’ma handle this,” after the shooting. He and his wife left the scene without calling 911.
The next day, the husband said Carter called his wife. He overheard the call because it was on speaker, and heard Carter ask them to say she was the shooter. “I told [Carter] it was a stupid idea, but go with it,” the husband said.
The prosecutor asked if the husband lied about who the shooter was. He said, when detectives interviewed him, he didn’t think they would believe what happened, and instead would assume it was a “lovers’ quarrel,” therefore he lied.
However, “the police didn’t buy it,” the husband said and then he told them Carpenter shot Nicholson.
On cross-examination, Copeland insisted it was the husband’s decision to lie because Carter never specified who to tell that she was the shooter or to lie to police, detectives, or in a trial.
A crime scene analyst with the Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS) also testified that he recovered a firearm from the interior of a vehicle registered to Carpenter which he swabbed for DNA material. According to court documents, Carpenter reportedly drove this vehicle the day of the incident.
Further, a forensic scientist with DFS testified about retrieving a buccal sample from the Homicide Branch of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Court documents show that this swab was reportedly used to tie Carpenter to the crime and exclude Carter.
The trial is scheduled to continue on March 18.
