Judge Delays Probable Cause Ruling in DC Jail Stabbing

By Yessica Osorio [former] , Madelyn Nall [former] - October 31, 2024
Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | stabbing | Suspects | Victims |

DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan delayed a probable cause ruling in a jail stabbing case following a hearing on Oct. 29.

Koran Gregory, 20, and Byron Matthews, 19, are being charged with assault with intent to kill while armed for their alleged involvement in stabbing an inmate at the DC Jail on the 1900 block of D Street, SE, on Sept. 12.

Gregory and Matthews have additional charges against them for their alleged involvement in other cases.

Gregory is currently facing charges for his alleged involvement in a drive-by shooting that killed 10-year-old Arianna Davis on May 14, 2023 on the 3700 block of Hayes Street, NE.

Matthews is facing additional charges for his involvement in a mass shooting that occurred on April, 21, 2023 on the 500 block of LeBaum Street, SE and the 2900 block of 2nd Street, SE. Eight individuals sustained injuries.

Matthews had taken a plea deal for his involvement in the mass shooting in August which reduced his counts from fifty to three. Sentencing is pending for this case.

According to court documents, the stabbing victim had been transferred to the unit where the defendants were located on the day of the incident. In just 15 minutes of being there, he was attacked by “three to four” individuals who he could not identify. The victim was taken to the hospital to be treated for various body injuries from the assault.

Court documents also stated that surveillance footage depicted the defendants attacking the victim, before fleeing the scene after Department of Corrections (DoC) officers sprayed them with pepper spray. 

During the hearing, the prosecution called the lead detective from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) — who identified the defendants in court.

The MPD detective testified she was given a profile sheet by investigators — which included last names and photos of the inmates at the prison — which she used to try and identify those involved in the stabbing on the video footage. She said she was able to identify them through their complexion.

When asked how she found out who was involved, she said by speaking to three witnesses — all DOC employees — who gave her their testimony. The detective claimed they saw the incident, but didn’t immediately know where the individuals had gone after the incident but later put them in different rooms. 

Molly Bunke, Matthews’ attorney, and Gregory’s attorney, Michael Bruckheim, insisted the prosecution failed to meet the standards for probable cause, claiming the prosecution did not have sufficient evidence that the suspects acted with the intent to kill the victim. 

Bruckheim also argued that the prosecutors failed to recover any blood evidence or the victim’s medical records describing his injuries.

Bunke suggested the identification of the defendants seemed like it was a matching game based on their complexions on the video and profile photos. She stated that the prosecution has provided no evidence that Matthews is in the video, since the person in the video had a head scarf that masked his face. 

Judge Raffinan said that the testimony of the detective, along with the video footage and injuries that were sustained were enough evidence to prove there was an intent to kill. However, the ruling on probable cause was delayed due to technical issues on reviewing video footage from the incident at the jail.

Parties will reconvene on Oct. 31.