Homicide Defendant Released After Reopened Preliminary Hearing

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A homicide defendant was released after the defense was granted a motion to reopen the preliminary hearing in front of D.C Superior Court Judge Robert Okun in an Aug. 30 hearing.

Jahi Settles, 23, is charged with second-degree murder for allegedly killing 33-year-old Langston Sharps with a firearm. The incident occurred on July 3, 2023, on the 2800 block of Hartford Street, SE.

According to court documents, a witness reported watching Settles and Sharps get into a verbal altercation about money, overhearing that Sharps owed Settles money. The witness then allegedly watched Settles pull out a gun and shoot Sharps.

Settles’ defense attorney, Jason Tulley, displayed surveillance footage from the incident, which had previously been admitted without audio to provide a different perspective of the argument. Tulley said Sharps initiated a physical altercation by trying to punch Settles, before he drew a firearm and shot at Sharps.

The defense called a Public Defender Services (PDS) investigative specialist who consulted a medical examiner about the victim’s gunshot wound. The witness testified that the injury patterns were consistent with the defendant lunging into the victim, setting off the gun by accident.

The investigator testified that there were two other witnesses present at the scene during the altercation–one heard a gunshot, and saw the argument, during which Settles had a “normal tone” but watched Sharps angrily swing at the defendant before the gunshot.

Another witness near the shooting described Sharps as “aggressive and vulgar,” allegedly threatening Settles, while Settles remained calm, according to the investigative specialist. He added the witness saw Sharps reach into a bag and pull out “an object” and swing at the defendant, the gunshot following moments later.

During the cross examination, the prosecution determined the specialist and medical examiner only reviewed two photos, was unsure about the injury patterns, trajectory of the bullet, and what lunging into the victim revealed about the incident.

The witness confirmed that all the information from the pair of witnesses came from conversations with Tulley.

The prosecution then called the lead homicide detective who testified at the last preliminary hearing.

The prosecution revisited the surveillance footage that documented the shooting, and the detective said the audio and video didn’t match up due to a lag in the footage. He also told Judge Okun that ShotSpotter’s timing and the footage time didn’t match up either. ShotSpotter is a technology used by police to determine the location of gunfire.

Tulley argued the new evidence shows Settles shot Sharps in self-defense. He insisted the audio of the surveillance footage confirms that Sharps had initiated the physical fight, and there was evidence to suggest that he had a weapon in hand due to the knife found on scene with the victim’s DNA apparently present.

Tulley argued that this was a strong case for manslaughter, and that Settles ”himself was surprised by the shot.”

The prosecution refuted this argument by referring to the footage in which Settles leaves the argument and returns to shoot Sharps. They said during interviews with police, Settles never mentioned being afraid or acting in self-defense.

The judge stated that the new evidence didn’t undermine his previous ruling, and still found probable cause for second-degree murder.

However, he found Sharps as the first aggressor and in consideration for Settles’ clean record before the incident he was released to home confinement after a representative from the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) found him eligible.

The parties are set to reconvene on Oct. 1.