Jail Employee Says Mass Shooting Defendant Previously Attacked at DC Jail

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A DC Jail correction officer testified about an inmate incident involving one of six co-defendants in 2016 before DC Superior Court Judge Neal Kravitz on May 1.

Erwin Dubose, 30, Kamar Queen, 27, Damonta Thompson, 28, and William Johnson-Lee, 22, are charged with conspiracy, two counts of premeditated first-degree murder while armed with aggravating circumstances, two counts of assault with the intent to kill while armed, and three counts of assault with significant bodily injury while armed for their alleged involvement in the mass shooting that claimed the lives of Donnetta Dyson, 31, Keenan Braxton, 24, and Johnny Joyner, 37 on the 600 block of Longfellow Street, NW on Sept. 4, 2021 where three other individuals were injured..

Additionally, Dubose, Queen, and Johnson-Lee have an additional nine counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. Thompson and Queen each have an additional count of first-degree murder while armed with aggravated circumstances, and Johnson-Lee has two additional counts of first-degree murder while armed with aggravated circumstances. Dubose, Queen, and Thompson each add a charge of assault with intent to kill while armed.

Dubose and Queen are charged with unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction. Dubose also faces another charge of premeditated first-degree murder while armed and tampering with evidence. Queen and Johnson-Lee each add carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business to their list of charges.

Another shooting occurred on the 800 block of Oglethorpe Road, NE that left one individual injured, where prosecutors claim Queen and friends were shot at.

Toyia Johnson, 52, and Mussay Rezene, 32, are charged with accessory after the fact while armed and tampering with physical evidence for their alleged involvement in assisting the other co-defendants with disposing of evidence and attempting to avoid arrest in connection to the shootings.

A correctional officer from the DC Jail testified about a fight that occurred between inmates in April of 2016, involving Dubose. He explained that when incidents occur at the jail, such as inmates fighting or assaulting an officer, any officer who witnesses the event has to write an incident report.

Summarizing his document, the witness testified that on April 8, 2016, two inmates assaulted Dubose. According to the officer, Dubose was taken to the infirmary on a stretcher. However, the officer was unable to recall much detail.

Michael Bruckheim, one of Dubose’s defense attorneys, cross-examined the witness about his inability to recall the incident he described on direct examination without his notes. The witness replied that he could not recall the details because the incident occurred almost ten years ago.

Additionally, Kevin Robertson, on behalf of Rezene, asked the witness about his inability to confirm that he made the report within an hour of the incident because there was no timestamp or proof. He also challenged the witness on the fact that the report does not say anything about a stabbing, which is what the prosecution claimed occurred.

An assisting detective from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) testified about security footage that was obtained from the apartment complex at 400 Galloway Street, NE, which prosecutors claim is where Dubose resided at the time of the shooting and where the shooters withdrew after the attack. Security footage of the front door of the apartment complex shows several individuals entering by scanning a key fob moments after the shooting. However, he was unable to identify any of the men in the video.

Parties are slated to reconvene on May 6.