Juror Sickness Delays Deliberations in Murder Trial

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After a juror reported he had fallen ill with the flu, DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan decided that the jury would not continue deliberations in a murder trial on Nov. 14.

Rakeem Willis, 31, is charged with three counts of first-degree murder and fleeing a law enforcement officer, among other charges, in relation to the shooting deaths of 26-year-old Javon Abney, 26-year-old Sean Shuler, and 24-year-old Tyrik Hagood on Jan. 26, 2019, on the 1500 block of Fort Davis Place, SE.

Arguments closed on Nov. 8, and the jury has been deliberating since. Early Monday morning, however, one juror called into the court to report he could not make it to the courthouse, because he was sick.

“Well, it was the easiest jury for awhile,” Judge Ryan joked. Now, he said, they had to determine whether the juror had come down with just the flu and not COVID-19, which the parties avoided naming.

“One person’s flu is another person’s… who knows,” Judge Ryan added, trailing off.

Defense attorney Howard McEachern suggested that the sick juror call in again in the afternoon, and again the next morning, to confirm it’s not something more serious. If he is able to return and no other jurors are sick, Judge Ryan said, the deliberations can resume Tuesday morning.

“We do have notes that bring the latter part of the week into concern, though,” Judge Ryan said. Several jurors had suggested that they had commitments on Thursday and could not deliberate on that day.

A co-defendant in the trial, 33-year-old Johnathan Winston, was acquitted of murder charges on Nov. 8 for lack of sufficient evidence. Willis could more firmly be pinned to the scene of the crime than Winston, using his cell phone records.

In closing arguments, McEachern asked the jury to consider testimony that suggested Willis didn’t know any of the victims and lacked motive. The prosecutor noted more than a dozen calls from Willis to Shuler that day that, he said, suggested otherwise.

The jury has, thus far, deliberated for more than two full days.

Parties are expected to reconvene on Nov. 15 as jurors continue to deliberate on the case.