Judge Issues Seven Bench Warrants, Continues 2 Show Cause Hearings

By D.C. Witness Staff - November 2, 2020
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Probation | Suspects |

A DC Superior Court judge issued seven bench warrants, continued two hearings and revoked one probation during pretrial and probation show cause hearings on Nov. 2.

Judge Gerald Fisher  issued a bench warrant for a defendant’s failure to appear to his pretrial show cause hearing.

James Turner, 50, is charged with attempted threats to do bodily harm. He allegedly has not been reporting to the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) and has yet to verify his address. His defense attorney, Sharon Weathers, made representations that her client suffers from mental health issues and is homeless. 

A bench warrant was issued for Marico Wright, for his failure to appear. 

Wright pleaded guilty to attempted possession with intent to distrust a controlled substance on Sept. 21, 2016. As part of his sentence, he was put on two years supervised probation. A notice of noncompliance with his terms of probation was filled on Oct. 5.

A bench warrant was also issued for Devon Brown, who failed to show up to court and has not been in compliance with the terms of his probation.

Brown pleaded guilty to attempted unlawful possession of liquid PCP on Oct. 4, 2019. He was given one year of supervised probation. A notice of noncompliance was filed on Sept. 28. According to his probation case manager, Brown has yet to pay what he owes to the Victims of Violent Crime Compensation fund. He also has been re-arrested on drug distribution charges in Arlington, Va.- where he remains held. 

The judge issued a bench warrant for Eric Thorne, due to his absence in court today and noncompliance.

The 29-year-old is charged with unlawful entry on private property. Notices of noncompliance were issued on June 30, Aug. 13 and Sept. 22. According to PSA, he has not connected with mental health services because he has not renewed his insurance. He has also been a loss of contact with the agency. The last time PSA made contact with him was on June 3, a representative told the judge.

A bench warrant was issued for Jerome Benton due to his failure to appear. 

Benton, 39, is charged with assault on a police officer, simple assault and attempted threats to do bodily harm in one case. He is on probation in another, where he pleaded guilty to attempted possession of a prohibited weapon on Oct. 2, 2019. In both cases, he has received multiple notices of noncompliance with conditions. 

In his probationary matter, a previous bench warrant was issued on Jan. 9. 

Judge Fisher also issued a bench warrant for Christopher Christian for his failure to appear to his pretrial show cause hearing.

The 39-year-old is charged in five cases. In the first case he is charged with contempt and a violation of a condition of release. In the second and third cases he is charged with bail violations. He is charged with simple assault in his fourth case and possession of a controlled substance in his fifth.

PSA said that he has not been reporting in any form to their office. Christian’s defense attorney also failed to appear to court today.

A probation show cause hearing was continued for Ronell Brown on April 5, 2021. The hearing was continued to give Brown enough time to get into compliance with the terms of his probation. 

He pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm on Oct. 25, 2018. At sentencing he received two years supervised probation. A notice of noncompliance was filed on June 16. 

A second defendant’s hearing was also continued by Judge Fisher to see if a defendant will comply with his conditions of release. The judge also ordered the defendant to physically go to the PSA office today.

The 47-year-old defendant is charged with simple assault and sex abuse in two separate cases. He has not been reporting to PSA and multiple notices of noncompliance were filed in both cases.

Judge Fisher set a status hearing for Jan. 19 for a defendant charged in two separate cases with misdemeanor distribution of marijuana and distribution of a controlled substance, respectively. The judge also quashed the defendant’s bench warrant in her misdemeanor case. 

Monique Thomas, 51, received a certificate of completion from the Federal City Recovery Services drug and alcohol rehabilitation program. She plans to continue her addiction and mental health treatment and her progress will be verified in the future status hearing.

Judge Fisher also ruled that if Byron Anderson’s drug tests come back negative, and he pays the amount owed to the victim’s compensation fund, his probation will be terminated as successful.  

The 42-year-old pleaded guilty to distribution of a controlled substance on Oct. 20, 2016. His probation was revoked on Aug. 21, 2018. 

This article was written by Yasmeen McGettrick.