Judge Denies Defense’s Request to Dismiss Murder Case

By D.C. Witness Staff - July 8, 2019
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects |

During a motion hearing on July 8, a DC  Superior Court judge denied the defense’s  motion to dismiss a case after the prosecution allegedly did not hand over evidence in a timely manner.

Marquette Tibbs is charged with first-degree-murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and unalwful possesion of a firearm for his alleged involvment in the death of Orlando Silver III on the 1300 block of Howard Rd., SE in 2016.

Defense counsel accused the prosecution of suppressing evidence which included information on the victim’s criminal history and pieces of a pre-trial investigation report. Defense counsel claimed, “with simple due-diligence the documents could have been found in a matter of minutes or hours.”

However, the prosecution said the evidence was not disclosed because it was not exculpatory. “This was not an intentional suppression of any information,” the prosecutor told the judge.

Judge Todd E. Edelman decided that a dismissal wasn’t justified because the evidence was too vague to be exculpatory. Judge Edelman said the prosecution’s violations were more of an oversight. 

Tibbs, 27, is set to go to trial on Nov. 18.

In addition to being charged with murder, Tibbs is also charged with assault with the intent to kill while armed in a separate case that is scheduled for trial in 2020. 

Tibbs had a co-defendant, Cinquan Cartledge, in the homicide, however their cases were separated in March. Cartledge, 25, is scheduled for trial in 2020.

Nick Slater and Julia Guercio contributed to this article