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Murder Defendant Found Competent for Sentencing 

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. 

Murder Defendant Pleads Not Guilty Despite Confession

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.

Defendant Waives Right to Test Evidence

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.

Murder Defendant Shocks Co-Defendants with Rejection of Plea Deal 

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.

Judge Imposes Stiff Sentence for Shooter Asking, ‘When Will it Stop? Ever?’

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.

Questions of Juror Misconduct Continue in Two-Defendant Murder Case

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.

Document: Homicide: 100 Block of Forrester Street, Southwest

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.

Defense Attorneys for Four of Six Defendants Present Closing Arguments in 10-Year-Old’s Homicide Trial

On May 23, defense attorneys for four of six defendants in a homicide and conspiracy trial presented their closing arguments. 

Gregory Taylor, 27, Quentin Michals, 25, Qujuan Thomas, 24, Darrise Jeffers, 23, Isaiah Murchison, 23, and Marquell Cobbs, 21, are six of 10 defendants charged with first-degree murder, criminal street gang affiliation, conspiracy, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, assault with intent to kill, and other charges regarding a fatal drive-by shooting that resulted in 10-year-old Makiyah Wilson’s death. The shooting happened on the 300 block of 53rd Street, NE on July 16, 2018. 

Defense attorneys for Taylor, Cobbs, Thomas and Jeffers made their final plea to the jury on their clients’ behalf.

“I hope you have the wisdom, strength, and integrity to give a fair verdict,” Jonathan Zucker, Taylor’s defense attorney, told the jury. 

“Six young men’s fates will be put in your hands… I ask that you also give justice to the accused,” he continued. 

Kevin McCants, defense attorney for Cobbs, argued that Cobbs’ only involvement in the case was being contacted by the alleged driver of the black Infiniti on the day of the shooting asking him to get Michals to call him, and relaying that message. 

“[Cobbs] is being wrongfully accused, and overly prosecuted,” said McCants. 

Like other defense attorneys, Julie Swaney, Thomas’ attorney, argued that the prosecutors’ theory for this case does not make any sense, stating that there are way too many missing pieces in their arguments. 

She insisted that Thomas’ way of portraying himself on social media was merely a persona he was trying to create, and there is no evidence that proves the way he acted online is the way he conducted himself in real life. 

“Having conflict with someone online doesn’t always turn into real life violence,” she stated. 

According to Swaney, the prosecutors want to scare the jury by showing them things that would typically not happen in their neighborhoods but may be more likely in neighborhoods like Wellington Park, Clay Terrace, Potomac Gardens, and other neighborhoods classified as dangerous in the city. The shooting took place in Clay Terrace.

She argued that the prosecutors lumped Thomas in with everyone else to facilitate their ability to connect all the evidence. 

“[The prosecutors] need you to make leaps of logic,” she argued. 

Separately, Joseph Caleb and Phil Andonian, defense attorneys for Jeffers, argued that the jury’s perspective of the evidence is what’s most important for their final decision. 

According to Caleb, the Wellington Park neighborhood may not be like any of the juror’s neighborhoods, and that they may not understand or like what goes on in Wellington Park, but that doesn’t mean that things that happen in that neighborhood are wrong. 

Caleb argued that Jeffers became involved in conversations to purchase guns for the community, which prosecutors claim is part of a conspiracy, when one of his friends, 16-year-old Myangelo Starnes, was murdered in the Wellington Park neighborhood in September of 2017. 

“These men were trying to stay safe and stay alive,” he argued, insisting that they purchased guns to prevent themselves from ending up like Starnes. 

All defense attorneys asked the jury to return a verdict of not guilty for their clients, stating that there is no concrete evidence that proves any of the defendants’ involvement in the charges brought against them. 

Due to time constraints, defense attorneys for Jeffers were unable to conclude their closing arguments. 

Parties are expected back May 25.

Victim’s Sister Testifies Against Her Cousin In Lewkus Turner Murder Trial

Prosecutors brought the victim’s sister to the witness stand to testify against her cousin, Lewkus Turner, who is charged with killing Vincent Gyamfi in a family dispute.

Turner, 29, is accused of second-degree murder for allegedly shooting Gyamfi, 26, on Dec. 11, 2020, on the 2900 block of S Street, SE.  

Turner and Gyamfi were cousins in an extended family. The pair was “extremely close” and saw each other almost daily, according to Gyamfi’s sister who’s also Turner’s cousin.  Her aunt is Lewkus’ mother.

In the May 24 proceeding before DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan, prosecutors questioned Gyamfi’s sister about his state of mind before he confronted Turner on the day of the shooting.

She disputed the idea Gyamfi intended to attack Turner based on three phone calls she heard relating to a negative Instagram post Turner made about another family member who had COVID.  

The sister said that while Gyamfi was “irritated,” and “flustered” with the idea that somehow he might have been involved in the post, he didn’t raise his voice and wasn’t angry with Turner.  

In the final call, Gyamfi’s sister said he was, “Going to holler at Lewkus.”

In opening arguments on May 23, defense lawyer Michelle Stevens said the evidence showed that Gyamfi, not Turner, was the aggressor and that the defendant moved away and acted in self-defense.  “Vinnie just kept coming,” Stevens repeated to the jury.

The defense previously said that Gyamfi was known to carry a gun, but his sister denied it.

Under cross-examination, Gyamfi’s sister admitted she told a detective after the shooting that Turner and Gyamfi would fight physically all the time but that Turner would always lose.

Earlier a DC forensics expert said she analyzed a white Chevrolet Suburban, the vehicle the prosecution says Turner was driving at the time of the shooting.  She said she was able to retrieve fingerprints, DNA samples and locate a shell casing wedged into a seat.  In addition, she said there were blood stains on the floorboard and on a tire. 

Prosecutors also say that a white Chevy Suburban was rented a few days before the killings and its location was tracked by a telematics system which was recovered as evidence.  

The prosecution will continue presenting its case on May 30.

Judge Denies Murder Suspect’s Release Even Though Defense Says, ‘He’s Changed’

Defense lawyer Christen Philips pleaded before DC Superior Court Judge Robert Okun in a May 25 hearing that a suspect in a murder caught on surveillance video should be released while awaiting trial.

Malachi McFarland, 23, is charged with first-degree murder while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for allegedly shooting Kerry Odoms, 29, on April 15, 2021, on the 3300 block of 10th Place, SE. 

Philips said that McFarland had “changed in himself,” by becoming an “inquisitive student,” and wanting to continue taking online courses at Georgetown University.  Many of McFarland’s family members were in the courtroom, indicating, as Philips said, that he has a strong support network and is on the path to rehabilitation.

Prosecutors argued exactly the opposite.  They said whatever changes may have come over McFarland they don’t outweigh his dangerousness and the “overwhelming evidence” against him.  To support their argument they played surveillance video allegedly showing McFarland shooting Odoms. 

According to a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) report of the incident, “[McFarland] walked over to the decedent, produced a handgun and fired multiple times toward the decedent at close range.” 

In addition, the prosecution says McFarland was convicted of a prior firearms violation. 

Judge Okun agreed with the prosecution saying that even though McFarland had done well in jail, the evidence weighed “heavily, heavily in favor of detention.’

A trial readiness hearing is scheduled for Nov. 3 at 9:30 a.m. 

Document: Arrest Made in Assault with a Dangerous Weapon (Gun) Offenses in the Seventh District

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) has arrested and charged 18-year-old Byron Matthews with assault with a dangerous weapon and carrying a pistol without a license for his alleged involvement in two non-fatal shootings that occurred on April 21 on the 500 block of Lebaum Street, SE and the 2900 block of 2nd Street, SE.

According to MPD documents, one adult male and one juvenile female were injured in both shootings.