DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan struck some testimony from a Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) special agent on May 14 that prosecutors allege tracked a defendant’s whereabouts at the time of a homicide.
D’Andre Montgomery, 20, is charged with conspiracy, premeditated first-degree murder while armed, felony murder while armed with aggravating circumstances, four counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, attempt to commit robbery while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed, unauthorized use of a vehicle during a crime of violence, and carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 28-year-old Kenneth Barksdale Jr. on Dec. 16, 2023 at the 1200 block of 44th Place, SE. Barksdale sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the abdomen and arms.
Kevin Hider, 20, and Eric Sheffield, 21, also face charges for their alleged involvement in Barksdale’s death but will face separate trials.
The prosecution called a FBI Special Agent and member of the Cellular Analysis Survey Team (CAST), whom the court qualified as an expert in cell site analysis. The agent explained to jurors that cell sites are locations used by carriers to provide service, that call detail records show the date, time, and identifier of a cell site used during a call, and that a phone does not always connect to the closest tower, but rather to the one giving the best signal.
The agent testified that he analyzed records associated with the phone number of Hider and Montgomery’s GPS data provided by the prosecution. Using mapping software, he walked jurors through a series of locations from Dec. 15 and 16, 2023, including Hider’s reported residence, a restaurant called Sarney’s, and the area near the homicide scene. He described instances in which Montgomery’s GPS and Hider’s phone connected to the same cell site, repeatedly using the term “colocated.”
Montgomery’s attorney, Charlotte Gilliland, objected, arguing the testimony was misleading and revisited an earlier ruling from DC Superior Court Judge Judge Dayson that the limitations of cell site analysis needs to be clear. Judge Ryan agreed that the testimony was problematic, finding that the level of accuracy in cell site analysis does not allow for that degree of location specificity.
Instead, Judge Ryan ordered the prosecution to use the language: “the GPS data is within the tower’s cover data, where the phone is most likely to be found.”
When the jury returned, Judge Ryan instructed them that the word “colocation” was stricken from the record, and the testimony that accompanied it should be disregarded.
Direct examination continued with the agent describing additional plot points near the homicide location at 8:06 and 8:07 p. m. on Dec. 16. According to court records, the murder allegedly occurred at 8:08 p. m. on Dec. 16. A series of five calls also connected between 10:01 p. m. and 12:01 a. m. on Dec. 16 and 17, which was consistent with the Montgomery GPS and Hider’s phone being close to one another.
In Gilliland’s cross-examination, the CAST agent acknowledged that he had only reviewed Hider’s phone records, not Montgomery’s, and that cell site analysis connects a phone to a tower rather than a specific address. Gilliland emphasized that the prosecution had provided all of Montgomery’s GPS data to the FBI.
Gilliland also confirmed with the agent that there was a lack of representation of cell tower reach in the prosecution’s exhibits and that there were many other overlapping cell sites in the regions they were found. He also testified that no cell site information suggested Montgomery’s phone was present when a Chevy Malibu was stolen from the 3200 block of O Street, SE on Dec. 15, 2023, the vehicle prosecutors allege the defendants drove to the homicide scene the following night.
According to court documents, ballistics casings recovered from inside the stolen Malibu were later linked to casings from the homicide scene, and Montgomery’s GPS ankle monitor allegedly placed him near the site of the theft at the time it occurred.
On redirect, the agent told jurors that the absence of data does not mean a phone was not in a given location, and that it is common for the prosecution to provide the locations he plots.
The prosecution also called a patrol officer from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), who was recalled to testify about firearms recovered during the investigation. The officer told jurors that five firearms were located in connection with the case, and that three people were arrested on the night of the shooting.
On cross-examination, Gilliland emphasized that the prosecution had not asked the officer about the firearms during her previous testimony, and had not informed her that she would be recalled.
The prosecution then established that all of the evidence the officer testified about existed before her prior appearance, and that they were not attempting to hide evidence.
The trial is set to resume on May 18.
