Two mothers involved in a family brawl turned fatal shooting took the stand on Nov. 10 before DC Superior Court Judge Danya Dayson.
David Pena, 49, is charged with second-degree murder while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm. The charges are in connection to Pena’s alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Maurice Robinson on the 2900 block of Southern Avenue, SE on June 12, 2023.
Prosecutors called Robinson’s mother to testify. She testified that she and the mother of the other young woman involved in the fight were like sisters. She stated that on the evening of June 12, 2023, she received a call from her to meet up, though she did not know why.
When Robinson’s mother arrived, along with her husband, her husband’s brother, Robinson, and her daughter, she learned that there was a confrontation and her niece was going to fight. She stated that no one in her car had any firearms.
When the fighting began, the witness stated that she maced the mother of Pena’s child because she attempted to join the fight.
When the fight moved into the street, the witness stated that at some point Pena was on the ground, got up, and pulled out a gun. She testified that she saw him reach into his pants, her son told her to move, she heard gunshots and then she ran to her car.
The witness stated that Robinson ran as well, but when they reached the parking lot he collapsed because he had been shot. She stated that she put him in the car and sat in the back with him while her husband drove to the hospital. She noted that Robinson was airlifted to another hospital shortly after. According to the witness, she spoke to law enforcement at the hospital and had never met Pena.
In a cross examination by Pena’s attorney, Dana Page, the witness stated that she was not told over the phone that her niece was going to fight. Page noted that in the witness’ grand jury testimony she testified that she was told her niece was going to fight.
When questioned about having mace, the witness stated that she always carries mace on her keychain which she had with her at the time of the fight. Page noted that she was not using her keys because her husband was driving to which the victim agreed.
The witness stated that she doesn’t remember ever mentioning to law enforcement that she had mace or maced anyone. When Page indicated that the witness maced children during the fight, she stated that that was news to her. According to the witness, she did not mace any children.
Page read transcripts from the grand jury in which she had testified to holding Robinson in the back of the car, bleeding, as they rushed him to the hospital. Her clothes and shoes, she had said, were bloodied.
Page showed images from body-worn camera and surveillance footage taken at the hospital showing Robinson’s mother riding in the front passenger seat of the car and, later, talking to officers with no apparent blood on her clothes.
“You can see your pink pajamas in the front seat, right,” Page said. “Ok, I was wrong,” Robinson’s mother replied.
Page further pressed the issue of her reliability as a witness, asking her directly if she hated Pena.
“You hate Mr. Pena don’t you,” Page said. Robinson’s mother responded that she initially hated Pena but no longer did. Page again turned to grand jury transcripts in which she had said that she had no bad feelings against anyone involved in the case.
Finally, Page turned her examination to an attempted arson at the apartment where Pena and his family lived. Robinson’s mother denied any involvement in the attempted arson, which occurred two days after the shooting.
Page played an Instagram Live video Robinson’s mother had made the morning after the attempted arson. In the video, the witness can be heard talking about participating in something illegal the night before.
“I just did some shit last night that I’m supposed to be in jail for now,” she said in the video.
Robinson’s mother denied any connection between her statement and the attempted arson. Judge Dayson instructed the jury to consider the alleged arson incident only insofar as it affected the witnesses’ credibility.
During the hearing, prosecutors also resumed their examination of the mother of Pena’s child, who was present at the scene of the brawl and subsequent shooting.
The witness stated that the first time she spoke to law enforcement she didn’t see who was shooting. She testified that she later told detectives that Pena was the one shooting. According to the witness and prosecutors, in her grand jury testimony she stated that she heard gunshots, but did not see who fired them.
Prosecutors asked whether she saw who fired gunshots to which the witness responded, no. The witness stated that she was initially untruthful because she did not want Pena to get in trouble or be upset with her.
The witness stated that on the date of the incident she saw Pena with a gun as she made her way up the stairs of her apartment after hearing gunshots. She testified that she did not see any other guns or weapons.
In a cross examination by Pena’s orther attorney, Gail Engmann, the witness testified that before the fight she was in the passenger seat of a car located by the sidewalk.
From the car, the witness stated that she could see her daughter get dragged into the street and two men join the fight. She noted that the individual in the car with her was trying to protect her daughter, and Pena was trying to break up the fight.
She stated that she saw someone macing her daughters and, after shots were fired, she and her family ran back inside. The witness testified that when she told detectives that Pena was the shooter she did not mean that she saw him shooting. She stated that she heard gunshots, saw Pena with a gun, and put two-and-two together.
According to the witness, Pena has never been upset with her for telling law enforcement what she knows.
The witness stated that she and Pena were romantically involved, but Pena was out of her life for a period of time. She stated that Pena eventually moved back in with her as she was battling cancer and he later moved across the hall of the apartment building and continued building a relationship with their daughter.
In a redirect by prosecutors, the witness testified that she saw people trying to kick her daughter on the left side of the vehicle she was in and she was out of the car when she heard gunshots.
Prosecutors also called to the stand a forensic pathologist with the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) to testify about the injuries Robinson sustained. The witness, who had performed an autopsy on Robinson, explained the nature of the gunshot wounds to Robinson’s back, chest, and arm as prosecutors showed images of wounds to the jury.
The witness said that the four bullets had entered through Robinson’s back and were not fired at an extremely close range.
Prosecutors also entered two of the bullets recovered from Robinson’s body into evidence.
Before parties retired for the day, prosecutors informed the jury that the defense and prosecution had both agreed to the authenticity of several pieces of evidence in the case without needing to call witnesses to testify about them.
The two sides had both agreed to the chain of custody over Robinson’s body and both had agreed that Pena had been convicted of a crime punishable by a term exceeding one year prior to the shooting. Additionally, the parties agreed to the authenticity of several enhanced surveillance videos of the brawl and shooting.
Trial is set to resume Nov. 12.
