Motion to Dismiss Charges Against Lead Defendant in COVID Juries Case Denied

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Defense attorneys for Tony McClam,34, were back in court for a May 13 hearing before DC Superior Court Judge Michael O’Keefe in a complex shooting case based on the constitutional issues of fair jury selection and double-jeopardy.

McClam, originally accused of killing 11-year-old Karon Brown in 2019 on the 2700 block of Naylor Road, SE, was found not guilty of first-degree murder in January of 2022 in a seven-count indictment, but the jury was hung on other six charges including assault with intent to kill and possessing a firearm during a crime of violence. The prosecution intends to retry the case.

In motions filed in 2022, McClam’s attorney, Jason Tulley, argued that McClam, along with dozens of others convicted during COVID, were denied a fair trial, “based on the data analyzed so far, that the… jury selected for this trial [and others] will…violate…the Fifth and Sixth Amendment [guaranteeing the jury fairly represents the community].” The complaint is that there were not enough Black individuals in the jury pool.

That case has yet to be resolved although the DC Office of the Attorney General, which represents the DC Superior Court, denies any bias in jury selection and stands by its selection process.

However, the current proceeding was focused on another defense motion filed last September to dismiss the case against McClam on grounds of a double-jeopardy violation.

“Despite this principle’s role as a hallmark of the American judicial system, the government is putting Mr. McClam in jeopardy a second time for the same alleged offense-all because it could not carry its burden at his first trial,” according to a defense filing last September.

In a May 8 development, the DC Court of Appeals denied that motion, setting the stage for McClam’s new trial pending further appellate action.

Judge O’Keefe noted the trial will be expedited as required. “This is a case of special interest,” he said, setting the next hearing on the matter for Oct. 18.