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By
D.C. Witness Staff
- June 16, 2020
Daily Stories
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Homicides
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Suspects
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Victims
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A DC Superior Court judge placed an armed robbery defendant in preventative detention.
Michael Walthall is charged with committing armed robbery with a knife. According to court documents, the victim told the Metro Transit Police Department that a man stole his backpack, which contained his laptop, at the Union Station Metro on Feb. 21 when he dozed off in his seat. The victim then followed the thief onto the platform where he claims the man threatened him with a knife.
DC Superior Court Judge Danya Dayson held Walthall in preventative detention without bail, citing his violent criminal history, which includes two cases of misdemeanor assault within the last year.
During Walthall’s hearing, the defendant seemed confused. When Judge Dayson asked if the court may proceed in its virtual format, Walthall said, “I didn’t know nothing about this court hearing, I don’t know what’s going on.”
Walthall, 42, was identified as the individual in surveillance footage of the crime by his probation officer and his sister. The footage prompted Judge Dayson to find probable cause that evidence in the case could point to Walthall.
Walthall’s next hearing is scheduled for Aug. 6.