Judge Releases Murder Defendant from Supervision Program

By D.C. Witness Staff - November 8, 2018
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects |

On Nov. 2, a DC Superior Court judge released a murder defendant from the high intensity supervision program (HISP). 

Keith Archie is charged with second-degree murder while armed for allegedly stabbing 32-year-old Demond Marcel Rush on the 3600 block of 22nd Street, SE in 2017. The Metropolitan Police Department found Rush suffering from six stab wounds. Apparently, the men were close friends.

Archie’s release includes removal of a GPS tracking device.  Judge Judith Bartnoff said she granted the release based on the defendant’s good behavior during the year that he was under HISP. 

According to court documents, on a rainy night, surveillance footage shows Archie and Rush outside an apartment building. Rush can be seen “limping, hunched over and holding his abdominal area.” Archie, 37, is seen about three minutes later walking to and entering the front door of the building. Police found blood at the building’s entrance that led to an apartment Archie was found in. The crime was not caught on camera.

Archie, who was intoxicated, was found without a shirt; he had blood on his jeans and shoes, the documents said.

The prosecution told Judge Bartnoff that it intends to consult with a DNA expert on the case. According to the documents, police seized several items, including a bloody Macy’s bag, a Burger King bag, the defendant’s jeans and shoes, multiple wash clothes from the apartment, a large knife from the apartment’s kitchen sink, a cigarette that appeared to have blood on one end and samples from a bloody hand print on a wall in the apartment. 

The defense was not able to discuss whether it would also conduct DNA testing because the case was transferred to a new attorney.

A status hearing is scheduled on Jan. 11, 2019.