The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) is seeking the public’s assistance in the investigation of a traffic fatality that occurred on Sept. 19, 2022, on the 3600 block of Benning Road, NE.
The incident caused life-threatening injuries to 43-year-old Carlos Aguiar.
Aguiar succumbed to his injuries on May 21.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying and locating a suspect-vehicle that was involved in a non-fatal shooting on May 7, on the 5000 block of Kimi Gray Court, SE.
The shooting left an individual suffering from non-life threatening injuries.
Diandre Caesar, 29, was arraigned on gun charges in a May 26 hearing for allegedly assaulting an individual following an altercation.
Caesar entered a not guilty plea for three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, three counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, one count of second-degree cruelty to children, one count of carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business, one count of possession of an unregistered firearm, and one count of unlawful possession of ammunition in an incident on June 28, 2022 on the 2200 block of New York Avenue, NE.
According to court documents, the incident began as an argument between the defendant and an individual who had his family with them, before being shot at by Caesar with a pistol.
Caesar is on release awaiting further proceedings on the condition he participates in a High Intensity Supervision Program (HISP), gets drug testing and GPS monitoring.
Joseph Fay, Caesar’s defense attorney, requested that his release conditions be altered during the period between the arraignment and the trial on the basis of the defendant’s previous compliance.
“[His] GPS non-compliance amounts to taking the trash out,” he argued, and stated that Caesar’s alleged noncompliance for drug usage was due to his medication that tested positive for amphetamines.
Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) appeared in court to counter the defendant’s claims of compliance, saying that the defendant’s specific medications would not have led to a positive amphetamine test and that he had also violated his 10 p.m. curfew.
DC Superior Court Judge Andrea Hertzfeld denied the defendant’s request based on the seriousness of charges pending.
Judge Hertzfeld set a trial readiness date for Oct. 16 and the trial for Oct. 30.
In a May 26 hearing, defense attorneys for co-defendants Demonte Gibson and Tre’quan Nelson asked for a 45-day extension pending grand jury indictments.
Gibson, 26, and Nelson, 23, are charged with first-degree murder while armed for allegedly shooting Delonte King, 34, on Nov. 3, 2021. The incident occurred on the 2800 block of 14th Street, NW.
Asani Forte, 25, who was also present in court, is charged with accessory after the fact to the assault with intent to kill for his alleged connection to King’s murder.
Defense attorneys Kevann Gardner and Rachel Cicural requested Gibson’s other case, a third-degree felony, trail this case based on an overlapping witness testimony and potentially incriminating evidence in both cases.
DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt spoke privately to DC Superior Court Judge Jason Park, who presides over the third-degree felony charge, to discuss the coinciding cases.
Judge Park will decide the next steps for the third-degree felony charge.
The next hearing in the homicide case is set for July 25.
DC Superior Court Judge Jason Park granted the defense until June 23 to file a motion that would potentially limit DNA evidence introduced on May 22.
Demonte Gibson, 26, is charged with assault with a dangerous weapon and armed robbery for his alleged involvement in a non-fatal shooting that occurred on Dec. 7, 2021 on the 1400 block of Fairmont Street, NW.
According to court documents, the victim was out grabbing something to eat when Gibson allegedly shot him in the left leg, then stole cash that fell out of his pockets.
During the hearing, defense attorneys raised concerns about the admissibility and accuracy of recently introduced DNA evidence about a firearm.
After discussion between the parties, an extension was granted by Judge Park for the defense to consider filing a motion, which seeks to exclude unqualified expert testimony, while also independently evaluating disclosed evidence.
The prosecution requested a trial date be set but that request was denied by Judge Park.
The next status hearing is set for July 14.
On May 25, DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan alerted parties in the case that doctors found Kavell Miller mentally competent for sentencing.
Miller, 22, was accused of shooting 33-year-old Lester Mangum on the 3900 block of South Capitol Street, SW on Oct. 8, 2021. Miller, 22, was originally charged with first-degree murder while armed.
He accepted a plea deal in January that reduced his first-degree murder charge to voluntary manslaughter while armed and dismissed three misdemeanor charges he was facing.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 21.
On May 26, Lavaughn Barnes, 32, pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder while armed despite confessing to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) that he did it.
Barnes is charged for his alleged involvement in the murder of 59-year-old Abdul Arias-Lopez that occurred on Nov. 4, 2022 on the 1300 block of Kearny Street, NE.
However, Barnes’ lawyer, Anthony Matthews, says that because Barnes has cognitive disabilities and a lawyer wasn’t present at the time the confession is invalid.
Arias-Lopez was not located until Feb. 3, when Barnes called 911 stating that he had found a body in his backyard.
According to court documents, Barnes told the dispatcher that he had gone into his backyard and found what appeared to be a human corpse.
“It was a horrible smell, and I saw inside the bamboo… a human corpse almost gone, like animals had started to get to it,” Barnes is heard in the recording of a 911 call.
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers showed up at his house and conducted an investigation.
On Feb. 9, Barnes talked to MPD detectives about how he realized it was a body and the last time he saw Arias-Lopez.
Barnes also told detectives that he hadn’t seen Arias-Lopez since before Nov. 4, when he failed to show up to paint his sister’s kitchen.
According to court documents, Barnes’ sister tried to reach out to Arias-Lopez after Barnes alerted her that he didn’t show up, but her efforts failed.
On Feb. 15, a detective interviewed Barnes at a homeless shelter, where he was residing after his sister told him not to return to her house.
“I feel sick, I did it,” he can be heard saying in the recording of the police interview.
“I was scared of the truth,” he continued. “I blacked out, used the taser gun and hit him in the back of the head,” he described.
He can also said he dragged Arias-Lopez down to his basement and out to the backyard, where he left the body to decompose for months.
“I’m sorry, I repent it to God… I have to tell my truth and I’m very sorry,” he can be heard saying.
Parties are expected back May 30 for a detention hearing.
On May 26, a defendant in a non-fatal shooting waived his right to independently test DNA evidence.
Vincent James, 39, was indicted on one count of assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. James allegedly fired 10 gunshots at a victim on July 30, 2020 on the 3900 block of South Capitol Street SE.
Several items were seized for DNA testing, including, six .45 caliber shell casings and a cell phone from the crime scene, as well as another cell phone and pair of shoes from the defendant’s home. The prosecutor said no testing had taken place since the last hearing.
DC Superior Court Judge Sean Staples told James that waiving his right now would mean he could not request testing in the future.
Parties are expected to return on Aug. 31 for a trial readiness hearing.
James’ trial is set to begin on Sept. 6.
On May 25, 19-year-old Nelfy Hernandez shocked his two co-defendants when he rejected a plea offer from prosecutors at the last second, because attorneys on both sides thought they had a deal.
Hernandez, DeAndre Levy, 21, and Trey Prillerman, 19, are charged with first-degree murder in relation to a mass shooting on the 5500 block of 9th Street, NW on Aug. 10, 2020. The three allegedly opened fire on a group of teenagers. Taijhon Wyatt, 17, was killed in the shooting.
Prosecutors had offered the defendants a wired plea deal, meaning they all had to accept it in order for it to be successful. The deal would have Hernandez and Prillerman plead guilty to second-degree murder, facing 12 years in jail.
Levy would have pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter while armed, and would face 8 years in jail.
Due to Hernandez’s rejection of the offer, Levy and Prillerman’s offers were withdrawn by prosecutors, and all three are expected to go to trial beginning June 14.
Parties are expected back May 31 to ensure there will be sufficient time to prepare for the trial following Hernandez’s unexpected decision.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Homicide Branch is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying and locating suspects in a fatal shooting that occurred on April 30 on the 3800 block of Jay Street, NE.
The decedent has been identified as 30-year-old Tyrone Hopkins.
DC Superior Court Judge Erik Christian went beyond the prosecution’s recommendations in passing sentence on Kelvin Brevard who, according to court documents, opened fire near a busy bus stop.
Brevard, 23, is charged with assault with a dangerous weapon during a crime of violence and unlawful possession of a firearm with a past conviction in connection with an incident that occurred on the 3900 block of Minnesota Avenue, NE on Oct. 13, 2022.
Brevard originally said the shooting was in self-defense but later pleaded guilty to all charges. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers allegedly recovered five shell casings from a storefront window and ten shell casings around the bus stop after the shooting. Brevard was critically wounded in the exchange of gunfire from an unknown assailant.
In a sentencing hearing on May 26, Brevard’s attorney Thecle Bethel asked the judge to put Brevard on probation because he was trying to get away from “people who were gunning for him” in the halfway house where he lived.
Bethel told the judge Brevard suffers from PTSD because he’d been shot 26 times in violent encounters. Brevard said he nearly died on the operating room table twice.
Unmoved, Judge Christian asked Brevard if he kept the people at the bus stop in mind during the attack. “People were fleeing…When does it stop, ever?” said Judge Christian.
Brevard said he did try to avoid shooting anyone to which Judge Christian replied, “By the grace of God” no bystanders were injured. “I don’t get the mentality,” he said.
The prosecutor said Brevard’s case is an example of the perplexing increase in gun violence in the District of Columbia which is at a twenty-year high. His sentencing recommendation was 42 months on the assault with a deadly weapons charge and 36 months on the illegal possession complaint.
However, Judge Christian went beyond that, sentencing Brevard to 72 months on the assault charge and 42 months on the weapons violations, both terms to be served consecutively.
After the hearing Bethel told DC Witness that the outcome was no surprise given Brevard’s history. “He felt it was his karma,” she said.
On May 25, DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan heard testimony from a witness and a juror regarding their personal relationships and ties to two murder defendants. The juror found them guilty of all charges, but there are concerns she may have been biased against the suspects.
Robert Moses, 24, and James Mayfield, 23, were found guilty in December 2022 of conspiracy while armed, first-degree murder while armed, two counts of assault with intent to kill, and one count of assault with intent to kill while armed when the victim was especially vulnerable due to age, among other charges. These charges were in connection with a shooting that took place on Aug. 10, 2017, on the 1400 block of Montana Avenue, NE, which led to the death of 17-year-old Jamahri Sydnor.
On April 7, attorneys questioned a witness about his friendship with the defendants and his romantic relationship with the juror, who is alleged to have committed misconduct due to her knowing the defendants in high school.
The witness, who is charged with first-degree murder for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Rafiq Hawkins on March 23, 2019, stated he and the juror were seeing each other before his arrest.
During one of their conversations, he alleges, they discussed Moses and his arrest for the murder of Sydnor.
According to the witness, the juror said that if someone was arrested for something they were definitely guilty.
Four years later, she served on the jury for Sydnor’s murder, and was part of the 12 jurors that deliberated and found Moses and Mayfield guilty of all charges.
Judge Maribeth Raffinan questioned her regarding her high school education, the year she graduated, and the people she knew at Washington Math Science Technology (WMST) High School.
According to the juror, she never knew or interacted with Moses or Mayfield, and her relationship with the witness was never more than “friend of a friend”.
She said that, prior to being picked as a juror in this trial, she had heard of the case as it had a lot of media coverage, but insisted she never discussed the case or the defendants with anyone.
A hearing was scheduled for July 12 to determine next steps in the case.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Homicide Branch is seeking the public’s assistance in the investigation of a fatal-shooting that occurred on May 25 on the 100 block of Forrester Street, SW.
The decedent has been identified as 19-year-old Adrian Burgess.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) has released a video of a suspect-vehicle sought for it’s involvement in a non-fatal shooting that occurred on March 23, on the 1500 block of U Street, SE.
The incident left one individual suffering non-life-threatening injuries.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying and locating a suspect-vehicle allegedly involved in a non-fatal shooting that occurred May 25, on the 800 block of Southern Avenue, SE.
The incident left an adult female individual suffering from non-life-threatening injuries.
