Judge finds probable cause in Kenneth Bellamy’s preliminary hearing

Judge Robert Morin found probable cause to hold Kenneth Bellamy without bail for the alleged first-degree murder of 23-year old Michael Tyrone Jones.

Jones was found shot to death in the 300 block of East Capital St., SE in December 2015. Bellamy, 32, was arrested in April in connection to Jones’ homicide.

Both the prosecution and defense examined and questioned homicide detective Paris White on Tuesday in court. White’s testimony included an extensive review of the arrest warrant he had originally written out at the scene of the murder.

The preliminary hearing began with Attorney Jon Morris, on behalf of Bellamy, insisting the government send a new copy of the fifteen page summary of the arrest warrant and witness interviews. He claimed the original copy sent to the defense was extremely redacted and arguably difficult to read.

White then took the stand and the government questioned him to fully understand his account of the crime scene and witness interviews. The government argued four of the nine witnesses can’t be used during trial because they lack credibility. Much of the witness’ testimony in the arrest warrant is “street-rumor and assumption,” the prosecution said.

The defense cross examined White, and had him describe the crime scene where Jones’ body was found: a laundry room at 3539 E. Capitol St, SE. At this crime scene fingerprints were found belonging to two of the witnesses, but not Bellamy. Morris also asked about Bellamy’s past criminal record and work history. Bellamy had no past felony convictions, but does have two past convictions dealing with marijuana.

Morris argued that because of the lack of fingerprint evidence at the crime scene and after a review of Bellamy’s work history, Bellamy should be released to a halfway house with GPS monitoring. “No motive information has been put forward for Mr. Bellamy to commit this offense,” Morris said.

The prosecution argued against Bellamy’s release and Morin agreed, stating there exists probable cause to hold Bellamy without bail. Morin also requested the prosecution send un-redacted documents to the defense council.

Bellamy will return to court on October 14 for a felony status conference at 10:30 a.m.

Police investigating three homicides over holiday weekend

The Metropolitan Police Department responded to three homicides over the July 4 holiday weekend.

Antoine McCullough, 30, and John Williams III, 35, were both killed on Saturday. Omar Lindsay was killed on Sunday.

Police responded to a shooting in the 3500 block of 18 St., SE after midnight on Saturday morning. When investigators arrived they found McCullough suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to a local hospital where he later died.

About five hours later on Saturday, police were called to the 200 block of 50 St., NE and found Williams suffering from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

On Sunday night a little after 9:45 p.m. police responded to a call of a shooting in the 300 block of V St. NE. When investigators arrived they discovered Lindsay, who had been fatally shot.

All three homicides are currently under investigation, and no arrests have been made.

During the holiday weekend last year there were four homicides over the span of two days.

Man killed Wednesday identified as Matheno El

Police have identified the man killed Wednesday as 25-year-old Matheno El.

Police responded to a report of a “man down” in the 800 block of Bladensburg Rd. in Northeast D.C. at around 10 p.m. Wednesday night.

El was found unconscious and unresponsive. He was declared dead at a nearby hospital.

Police are still investigating and have not yet made any arrests.

Police investigating death of unidentified man in Trinidad neighborhood

Police are working to identify a man who they say was fatally shot in the back Wednesday night.

Police responded to a report of a “man down” in the 800 block of Bladensburg Rd. in Northeast D.C. at around 10 p.m.

The man was found unconscious and unresponsive, and was declared dead at a nearby hospital. Police are still investigating the homicide and have not released any other identifying information.

This is the second homicide in the Trinidad neighborhood this month. Wayne Dailey, 59, was killed on June 20. Police have not yet made any arrests.

Tammy Mathis-Lawrence pleads guilty in Ricardo Dasilva murder case

The suspect charged with the stabbing death of 30-year-old Ricardo Dasilva pleaded guilty today to voluntary manslaughter as part of a plea deal.

Tammy Mathis-Lawrence, 42, waived her right to a preliminary hearing and a trial relating to the January 23 homicide.

The murder took place in the 2800 block of Douglass Place, SE a little after 8 a.m. on Jan. 23, when Lawrence and Dasilva, who was a tenant living in her home, became engaged in an argument over living arrangements.

According to the prosecution’s evidence planned to be presented if the case went to trial, Lawrence and Dasilva argued in Dasilva’s bedroom before the argument moved to Lawrence’s room. Lawrence then stabbed Dasilva in the neck with a pair of scissors. In court documents Lawrence stated that she was upset that her tenants “weren’t pulling their weight,” which led to her conversation with Dasilva. Dasilva was unarmed at the time of the incident and he died at the scene.

Dasilva’s mother was present in the courtroom Thursday and became emotional when Lawrence stated her plea.

The defense and prosecution agreed on a 6-8 year prison sentence and the possibility of a $250,000 fine. The maximum sentence for voluntary manslaughter is 30 years. Judge Milton C. Lee said that he will need 60 days to accept the plea.

Recent motions for Lawrence to enter a halfway house failed, and she will remain in custody without bail until her sentencing on October 21.

Status hearing date set for Antonio Brown

Superior Court Judge Jose Lopez scheduled a status hearing date for Antonio Brown, charged with the alleged murder of Charles Antonio Welch.

Although it was announced in court that the grand jury voted to return an indictment, the government was not prepared to go forward with the arraignment and was rescheduled for June 30. Lopez scheduled a status hearing after that for Aug. 5.

The grand jury charged Brown with premeditated first-degree murder while armed, Possession of a firearm during crime of violence or dangerous offense, and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Brown had previously been convicted in court for an unspecified crime that could have been punishable by a year’s sentence in prison.

On Sep. 18, 2015, police found Welch suffering from a single gunshot wound inside of a white Acura at the parking lot of 1845 Harvard Street, NW.

On Sep. 29, 2015, D.C. Police arrested Brown and charged him with first-degree murder while armed.

Dujuan Garris trial scheduled to begin July 6

A trial for the case against Dujuan Garris, charged with the murder of James Anderson last February has been scheduled for Friday.

During Garris’ status hearing last week, the prosecution discussed evidence they propose to use in the trial set to begin July 6.

Garris has been held without bail since he was first charged with Anderson’s murder.

Prosecution and defense for Dujuan Garris met Thursday in a status hearing to set in motion the trial now scheduled to start July 6. Dujuan Garris is being charged with the murder of James Anderson, a charge brought against him on February 6, 2015.

The prosecution then addressed Judge Milton C. Lee with some concern on the dates of the trial. One of the prosecution’s key witnesses plans to be out of town July 8-14. The defense proposed that the prosecution fly the witness back for her testimony, but the prosecution argued that as an extremely “non-sensible” course of action. After heated debate between both parties, Lee ruled that the trial will begin July 6 and the witness will testify before she travels.

The prosecution warned Judge Lee to prepare for a lengthy trial. Garris will be seen back in court for a final status hearing June 30 before jury trial begins July 6.

Gary Proctor’s defense requests DNA testing

The attorney for the man charged with Jerome Diggs’ murder last July requested the testing of DNA evidence from the crime scene.

Gary Proctor has been charged with second-degree murder for allegedly shooting and killing Diggs.

Cartridge casings, bullets, pillows and blankets used to stop bleeding, the victim’s clothing, and cell phones were all found at the crime scene and taken in as evidence.

So far, the government has chosen not to test the pillows, blankets, or victim’s clothing for their case. However, the defense has requested that all pieces of evidence be sent to them for DNA testing including these items.

Attorney Madalyn Harvey, representing Diggs, also argued that the phones recovered at the crime scene should be sent to their phone specialists for data retrieval. The prosecution has already had access to this information and Harvey requested the same access. Judge Florence Pan asked that the prosecution and defense sit down together and come to an agreement on an itemized list of evidence that will be sent to the defense council and the cell phone request order.

Proctor will be seen next in court for a status hearing on September 30.

Eugene Sherman and Joseph Jennings waive right to preliminary hearing

Eugene Sherman and Joseph Jennings waived their rights to a preliminary hearing in the case against them for the alleged murder of Matthew Shevlin. Another suspect in this homicide, David Harvey will appear in court Thursday.

Sherman, 53, Jennings, 35, and Harvey, 18, have all been charged with first-degree murder while armed in the January 22 shooting death of Shevlin. Jennings is the latest suspect arrested for Shevlin’s murder. He was taken into custody on May 13.

Shevlin was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds on the stairs of his apartment complex in the 400 block of M St., NW a little before 10 p.m. He was taken to a near by hospital where he later died.

According to charging documents, police found mason jars of a “green weed substance” in Shevlin’s apartment, and with one of the suspects on the day of Shevlin’s murder.

Both Sherman and Jennings agreed in court to forgo the preliminary hearing after the prosecution told of the amount of surveillance video, civilian testimonies and cellphone data the government had collected for the case. The case against Sherman and Jennings will proceed to trial.

A felony status conference has been scheduled for August 17 at 9 a.m.

Westley Blackwell found dead inside car Sunday morning

Westley Blackwell, 38, died on Sunday after he was found shot inside a car.

Police found Blackwell in the 1200 block of Valley Ave, SE, early Sunday morning. He was rushed to a hospital and pronounced dead later the same day.

Police believe the shooting occurred in the 900 block of Wahler Place, SE, at 12:05 a.m. Sunday. No suspects have been arrested.

GPS tracking places suspect at scene of Jarell Walker’s murder

Police have arrested and charged Hakeem Burroughs with the murder of Jarell Walker earlier this month.

Surveillance footage, two witness accounts, and GPS monitoring all aided in the charges brought against Burroughs, according to charging documents.

A little before midnight on June 2, police found Walker suffering from multiple gunshot wounds inside an apartment building at 3712 Hayes Street, NE. During the investigation, police found multiple .40 caliber cartridge casings and several 9mm expended cartridge casings retrieved beyond the breezeway of the Paradise apartment complex where the shooting took place.

Surveillance footage retrieved from the complex captured the shooting and appeared to show Walker and a friend walking out of the breezeway with their backs toward the camera at 11:46 p.m. The footage appeared to show Walker get shot and fall to the ground. A black handgun fell out of Walker’s jacket, but was never picked up or used by Walker. The friend Walker was accompanied with also appeared to be shot, but eventually got up and limped out of the breezeway.

According to charging documents, two witnesses were located and interviewed within 48 hours of the shooting. One witness told investigators they saw Walker and Borroughs in a verbal altercation while standing in the breezeway. The witness then saw Walker walk away from the suspect with hands by his side and not holding a weapon. The witness ran from the scene when he saw Burroughs pull out a handgun. The witness heard multiple gunshots soon after. The second witness was in a vehicle in the parking lot across from the breezeway at the time of the shooting and confirmed that the shooter was Hakeem Burroughs.

During the investigation, detectives found that Burroughs was already on supervised release for a previous charge, and his location was tracked with a GPS ankle bracelet. The GPS affirmed that he was within eight feet of the breezeway area at the exact time of the shooting.

After the evidence was reviewed from these three sources, Burroughs was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. He is currently being held without bail.

Police charge second man with murder of Dimas Fuentes-Lazo

Police have arrested and charged a man with the murder of Dimas Fuentes-Lazo this April.

Christian Romero, 23, has been charged with second-degree murder while armed for the fatal stabbing of Fuentes-Lazo. Romero has not yet been presented in court.

Last month, police announced the arrest of Francisco Daniel Ayala, also 23, for Fuentes-Lazo’s death, but according to court documents, those charges were dropped.

According to police, Fuentes-Lazo, 38, was found suffering from stab wounds on the night of April 23, and died at the hospital.

Police make arrest in February 2015 murder

Police on Wednesday announced the arrest of 20-year-old Andre Herndon, Jr., for the alleged murder of Navontae Howard last February.

According to police, Howard was found fatally shot on Ridge Road in Southeast.

Herndon was charged with second-degree murder while armed and has not yet appeared in court.

Mark Beasley’s trial set to start in June of 2017

A trial for the man charged with the murder of Darryn Conte has been set for June 2017.

Mark Beasley, 42, has been charged with first-degree murder for allegedly fatally shooting Conte last April.

Judge Jose Lopez’s decision to scheduled the trial for the summer next year came after both sides argued the date. In Beasley’s status hearing this week, the prosecution and defense discussed DNA found on the alleged murder weapon. Prosecutors said they are able to move forward with the trial as soon as the defense receives the DNA results, which are expected on July 8. Attorney Katerina Semyonova, on behalf of Beasley, argued that the defense needs more time to process this evidence, and if the trial is rushed, Beasley’s right to a fair trial would be infringed.

The prosecution insisted on putting jury selection in motion and informed Lopez they foresee the trial lasting close to two weeks with cross examinations. Lopez said the first time he had available for a two-week trial was in June.

“That’s the best I can give you,” Lopez said. Both parties agreed to the date.

Beasley is due back in court May 5, 2017 for a trial readiness hearing. He is being held without bail in the interim.

Kenneth Bellamy II arrested for December murder

An arrest has been made in the December 2015 shooting death of Michael Tyrone Jones.

Kenneth Bellamy II, 32, has been charged with first-degree murder while armed.

Michael Tyrone Jones, 23, was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds in the afternoon of on December 9, 2015 and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Bellamy is being held without bail and will be seen in court on July 5.

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