A key witness who previously took a plea deal to second-degree murder testified in a trial involving his former co-defendants on May 26 before DC Superior Court Judge Danya Dayson.
Alonzo Brown, 29, and Naquel Henderson, 28, are charged with one count of first-degree premeditated murder while armed, one count of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence while armed, four counts of assault with intent to kill while armed, and five counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for their alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 21-year-old Micheal Taylor and injuries to two other victims on Jan. 12, 2019, on the 1700 block of Benning Road, NE. Taylor sustained one shot to the back of his head, one to his thigh, and another to his left heel.
The key witness and former co-defendant who testified after accepting a plea, told the jury that he was charged with first-degree murder for his involvement in Taylor’s death and was arrested in Virginia in February 2019. The witness said he resolved the matter by pleading guilty to second-degree murder while armed and conspiracy to commit murder, for which he was sentenced in June 2025 to 11 years in prison with four suspended since he already served seven.
The key witness testified that his plea agreement required he cooperate with the prosecution and testify truthfully, and that in exchange prosecutors agreed not to pursue firearms or other upgraded charges. The witness confirmed that a breach of the agreement, including dishonesty amounting to perjury, could result in his facing the charges resolved in the plea.
Given time constraints, prosecutors will continue questioning the key witness and the defense will cross-examine him during the next day of trial.
A Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective testified on direct examination that he conducted a search warrant in January 2019 at Brown’s apartment. After Brown’s arrest, the detective said police looked for clothing and items matching photographs from the investigation.
The detective testified that he recovered an empty shoebox from a closet, and that the box matched the shoes an individual alleged to be Brown wore in a still image taken from surveillance footage of the apartment complex lobby on the day of the shooting. The Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS) photographed, packaged the items, and took the box for further investigation, said the detective.
On cross-examination, Brown’s attorney, Steven Kiersh, emphasized that the shoes were a common style and that an empty shoebox of that brand was not unusual. Kiersh further confirmed that the detective could not determine the shoes in the photograph were the same pair as those associated with the box.
A MPD sergeant testified hat he was on duty patrolling the area near the scene of the shooting on Jan. 23, 2019. There he encountered Brown, whom he recognized from a bulletin identifying him as wanted on an active arrest warrant. The sergeant testified that his body-worn camera captured the encounter and that Brown ran from officers after they attempted to arrest him, before he was ultimately taken into custody and his phone was seized.
On cross-examination, Kiersh noted that Brown was cooperative for the first several seconds of the encounter and was not initially doing anything wrong before officers moved to arrest him, resulting in the chase. Kiersh also confirmed with the sergeant that there was audio accompanying the video, where the sergeant’s partner threatened to shoot Brown if he didn’t stop running.
The owner of a remote video surveillance company testified on direct examination that his company provided motion-activated camera service to the Pentacles apartment complex where the shooting occurred, since 2017, that the cameras were not configured to record audio, and that footage was automatically recorded over after 30 days. The witness explained that police could request footage for specific dates and times, that he provided the requested clips, and that he had no involvement in the investigation.
On cross-examination, Kiersh questioned the distance between the buildings captured on the footage and why no audio had been requested, and the witness stated that the complex’s management, as the client, had not requested audio. The prosecution clarified which buildings the footage was pulled from and the approximate distances between them.
The trial is set to resume on May 27.
