Judge Denies Release Requests for Three Teenage Murder Defendants

By Maria Howard [former] - October 22, 2021
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

A DC Superior Court judge denied defense attorneys’ requests for the release of three teenage murder defendants.

Co-defendants Nelfy Hernandez, 18, Deandre Levy, 18, and Trey Prillerman, 17, are charged with first-degree murder while armed in the shooting of 17-year-old Taijhon Wyatt, Jr. on the 5500 block of 9th Street, NW, on Aug. 10, 2020.

The three are accused of shooting into a crowd of juveniles from inside of a vehicle, D.C. Witness previously reported.

“The types of crimes that I see that make me the most nervous are when young kids commit drive-by shootings into crowds of people,” Judge Neal Kravitz said during the Oct. 21 hearing.

Hernandez’s attorney, Douglas Wood, Levy’s attorneys, Thomas Healy and Jonathan Zucker, and Prillerman’s attorney, Elizabeth Weller, all filed bond review motions. 

“The prosecutor is saying [Prillerman] is one of the most dangerous people without any proof,” Weller said during the hearing .

However, Judge Kravitz said that, although Prillerman has no prior convictions, he has been indicted as an adult in Prince George County, Md., in connection with two armed robberies. 

Hernandez does have prior convictions, which Judge Kravitz said “shows a level of criminality that is disturbing.”

Judge Kravitz also said that Levy’s several pending cases, which include assault and armed robbery charges, give reason to believe that “no condition of release could protect the community.”

After denying all three release requests, Judge Kravitz scheduled parties to reconvene on Jan. 13.