Judge Lambastes Police For Losing Car As Evidence in Homicide Case

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DC Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman was at a loss to understand how a blue Honda that belonged to a murder victim mysteriously disappeared from police custody. The car that was ultimately junked could have contained a trove of exculpatory evidence, according to defense lawyers.

At times during the May 6 hearing the Judge labeled the behavior of Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers as “unbelievable” and “bizarre,” as well as showing “casualness.”

“The level of indifference goes beyond simple negligence,” said the judge, though he ruled out bad faith on the part of the police.

Anthony Green, 39, is charged with first-degree premeditated murder while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Terence Akindo on the 2300 block of 13th Place, NE on July 30, 2023. Akindo died from gunshot wounds to his head and chest.

With jury selection in the case scheduled for May 12, Green’s attorneys motioned the judge for sanctions against the prosecution for what they say is “bad faith” and negligence in handling the investigation.

“Good faith efforts to supply the information don’t exist in this case,” argued Sylvia Smith from the Public Defender Service who accused the police of “covering up some of the things they’ve done.”

What Judge Edelman also seemed to be struggling with is how the victim’s car, found three doors from the murder scene, seemed to vanish along with any paper trail of what happened or what the vehicle contained.

The defense claimed their case has been prejudiced because evidence in the vehicle, owned by a reputed drug dealer, like DNA or physical items was lost.

The prosecutor argued it was impossible to know whether anything inside the missing car is relevant to the case. “The defense doesn’t know what they don’t know,” said the prosecutor. She also maintained whatever was in the car was of low value.

Judge Edelman remained skeptical. “There is this whole mystery of the paperwork,” he said.

“What does the court do to make it right?” asked Judge Edelman. While he didn’t grant a defense motion to dismiss the case, he said the police behavior in this case warranted sanctions that could be imposed during trial.

The defense also motioned to strike prosecution video of Green, saying it showed him at the scene of a shooting in Montgomery County on July 15, 2023, just two weeks before Akindo was murdered.

Specifically, the prosecution is seeking to demonstrate that a distinctive pair of green shoes shown in the Montgomery Country sequence are a match to shoes recovered from Green in a search and identifiable as Green’s in surveillance footage near the crime scene.

The prosecution says the gun that was used in the Montgomery Country shooting is the same one that Green used to kill Akindo. Green has been charged but not convicted in the Montgomery County matter.

The defense argued that the jury will infer guilt on Green’s part by associating him with events leading to a homicide. However, Judge Edelman okayed the material in opening arguments.

In a move that Judge Edelman said was “fairly extraordinary,” the prosecution wants prospective jurors to be asked if they might be biased against the US Department of Justice because it has been surrounded by political controversy enforcing Trump Administration policies.

The judge is making final edits to the jury questionnaire.