Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Oct. 6, on the 1200 block of North Capitol Street, NW.
According to a press release, at about 1:07 pm, officers located four adult male victims suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. On Oct. 21, one of the victims was pronounced dead.
The decedent has been identified as 21-year-old Christian Mitchell.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives made an arrest in connection to a non-fatal shooting that occurred on Oct. 24, on the 100 block of Kennedy Street, NW.
According to a press release, at about 6:28 pm, officers found two adult males suffering from gunshot wounds.
On Oct. 24, 24-year-old Ojahri Hart and 19-year-old Yahweh Chambers were arrested and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon.
On Oct. 19, defense attorney Anthony Matthews requested for the defendant involved in a drive-by shooting to have his home confinement conditions revised, since he is in full compliance with pretrial services.
Eric Smith, 23, was charged with first-degree murder in June of 2018 for the fatal shooting of Rondell Wills on the 200 block of 50th Street, NE. Wills’ death was the result of a drive-by shooting. He was not the intended target.
According to news reports, Wills, 38, died from a fatal gunshot wound in the neck because he was trying to protect his children when the shooting occurred.
Court documents identified Smith as the driver.
Matthews informed DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan that he plans to conduct independent testing on the behalf of Smith.
The prosecutor indicated they will be also retest DNA in Smith’s case. Testing was already conducted before by the Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS).
Judge Raffinan revised Smith’s release conditions from in-person check-ins with a curfew from 12 p.m. to 8 a.m. to weekly check-ins with pretrial services one time a week via phone with the stay-away order still in place.
The next hearing is scheduled for Nov. 16.
During an Oct. 21 hearing, parties were intended to schedule a deposition date for one of the witnesses in a murder case, but the date was postponed due to the witness’s health.
David Rhodes, 54, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in connection with the May 9 stabbing of 47-year-old Georgette Banks on the 2600 block of Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE. Banks was stabbed multiple times in the neck, chest and arms. The defendant and the victim were in a relationship.
Rhodes was also quarantined at the DC Jail at the time and if the prosecution wants to present a deposition, all parties must be present.
The prosecutor gave the defense approval to conduct a cross-examination on the witness but argued that the defense requested additional information about the witness that was not necessary for cross-examination.
DC Superior Court Judge Milton Lee informed the prosecutor that a disposition requires the defense to have all necessary information needed for the deposition by the prosecution.
The prosecutor also expressed doubt if the witness would appear for the deposition since the witness has frequent medical appointments.
Judge Lee is recommended that the witness virtually present online if she couldn’t physically make it to court.
Instead of setting a deposition date, Judge Lee scheduled an additional status hearing for Nov. 16 to address the witness’s health status update and discuss the scope of the deposition.
Read more about this case, here.
DC Superior Court Judge Milton Lee granted on Oct. 21 a continuance for a status hearing for parties involved in a homicide case.
Kevin Sewell, 31, is charged with first-degree murder while armed and possession of a firearm during in the time of crime of violence for his role in the death of his father, 43-year-old Kevin Lamont Robinson on Nov. 30, 2014, on the 600 block of Edgewood Street, NE. Sewell’s co-defendant, 36-year-old Charles Jeter, is also charged with first-degree murder while armed for his part in the victim’s death.
During the Friday hearing, the prosecution delivered additional evidence to the defense, but the prosecutor said that any information regarding the evidence will not be disclosed.
Jude Lee said the parties need to meet two weeks prior to the next hearing to discuss motions they wish to file and all evidence in the case. The next hearing will also identify what the parties have produced since the last hearing.
A jury trial for Sewell is scheduled for Feb. 12, 2024. Jeter’s trial date has yet to been decided.
Judge Lee scheduled the parties to return to court on Nov. 2.
Read more about the case here.
A sex abuse defendant asked to be assigned new representation, citing disagreements with his current attorney, during an Oct. 24 hearing.
The 39-year-old defendant, charged with assault with intent to commit third-degree sexual abuse and burglary told DC Superior Court Judge Milton Lee that he felt his defense attorney, Anthony Smith, was not serving his interests.
“I told him I don’t think he’s working in my favor,” he said.
The prosecutor did not oppose the motion, but expressed doubt that the defendant’s concerns about Smith were legitimate.
On July 8, the complainant told Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers that the defendant opened the door to her apartment, which is located on the 100 block of I Street, SE, which had been unlocked, and approached her.
She said that he groped her thigh, said he wanted to have sex with her and climbed into her bed with his penis exposed. It was then that a witness entered the room and pulled him away, according to court documents.
The defendant stayed in the apartment building, walking around an interior courtyard, and was arrested in the early morning on July 9.
According to the court documents, the defendant exposed himself to a female officer while in handcuffs. He was charged with burglary and assault with intent to commit third-degree sexual abuse.
The parties are scheduled to return to court on Oct. 31.
A sex abuse defendant’s conditions of release were modified after the results of a DNA test corroborated his defense during an Oct. 24 hearing,
The 39-year-old defendant, was charged on May 16 with first-degree sex abuse and first-degree burglary in connection with an April 28 incident on the 1400 block of R Street, NW.
According to court documents, the defendant knocked on the complainant’s door, and as soon as she let him in, he grabbed her by the neck and forced her into the bedroom. He then forced her to bend over and penetrated her anus, she told police.
At the Monday hearing, defense attorney Todd Baldwin said that anal swabs detected no presence of male DNA following the incident. He said the result would “exclude my client from possibility.”
The prosecutor disagreed with this characterization, saying no presence of male DNA did not definitively mean no assault occurred. She also noted that the defendant’s DNA was found on the complainant’s neck, consistent with her report that he choked her.
Based on the results of the DNA test, Baldwin moved to have the defendant’s ankle monitor removed.
“He’s been completely compliant with his conditions,” Baldwin said, noting that the defendant was set to start tomorrow as the head chef at a new restaurant and didn’t want to be seen with an ankle monitor.
DC Superior Court Judge Milton Lee asked about the restaurant and the defendant provided details. It has a seven-course tasting menu, he said, and it is French.
“All right, all right,” Judge Lee said. “You don’t have to sell me on the restaurant.”
Judge Lee ordered the defendant’s ankle monitor be removed. The defendant will continue to have stay-away orders from the complainant and the scene of the crime and must check in with authorities via a phone call weekly.
The parties are scheduled to return to court on Nov. 28.
According to data from D.C. Witness, the majority of homicides and assaults with a dangerous weapon that occurred between Oct. 1 and Oct. 18 took place in Southwest, D.C.
D.C. Witness data indicates there have been seven non-fatal shootings in Northwest, D.C. As of Oct. 18, there was one stabbing-related homicide in that area of the city.
The graph shows that Southeast, D.C, has the highest rate of homicides. Three of the four homicides involved firearms. The fourth was a stabbing.
So far this month, there have been nine homicides and 21 dangerous weapon assaults.
homicides/ADW counts:
manner of homicides/ADW counts:
Graphic by Natalie Goodman and Celia Okoro
Parties discussed Oct. 21 issues over DNA testing and the transfer of evidence in connection to a 2019 murder case.
Diantre Smith, 46, is charged with one count of second-degree murder while armed, one count of possession of firearm during a crime of violence, eight counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, two counts of carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business, one count of leaving after colliding resulting in personal injury, three counts of leaving after colliding resulting in property damage/injury to an animal, three counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, and seven counts of assault on a police officer while armed in connection to the fatal shooting of 28-year-old Nyesha Galloway on Dec. 20, 2019, in a wooded area on the west side of the 400 block of 42nd Street NE.
During the Friday hearing, DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo began by stating that she does not yet have a ruling in regard to the defense’s motion to reconsider severing the defendant’s counts and that the motion remains pending.
In regards to recent DNA testing, defense attorney Madalyn Harvey and the prosecution deliberated the issues surrounding the conditions of the transfer.
Previously, the prosecution made representations that all DNA results and evidence were provided to the defense, but the file is too big to upload.
The prosecution has since placed the evidence on a thumb drive and sent it to the defense.
On Dec. 20, 2019, officers from the Metropolitan Police Department responded to the sound of 11 gunshots coming from a wooded area known as Fort Mahan. While canvassing the area, officers found Galloway in an unconscious and unresponsive state, suffering from gunshot wounds to the body. She was pronounced dead the following day.
The next hearing is set for Dec. 16.
Read more about this case, here.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are seeking the public’s assistance in locating a suspect in connection to a non-fatal shooting that occurred on Oct. 23, on the 3000 block of 14th Street, NW.
At about 6:25 pm, officers located two adult males suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. Both victims were transported to an area hospital for treatment.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Oct. 23, on the Unit block of N Street, SE.
At about 12:53 pm, an off-duty police officer heard the sounds of gunshots and located 31-year-old Kavaughn Washington, inside of a vehicle, suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives have made an additional arrest in a homicide that occurred on July 21, 2020, on the 4100 block of 14th Street, NW.
At about 5:04, officers located 30-year-old Nurudeen Thomas suffering from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
On June 1, a 22-year-old and 23-year-old adult male were arrested and charged with first-degree murder. On October 20, 23-year-old Steven Washington was arrested and charged with first-degree murder while armed.
DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo arraigned a murder defendant who pleaded not guilty to all charges on Oct. 21.
Warren Tyson, 52, is charged with second-degree murder while armed, carrying a dangerous weapon, and enticing a child in connection to the fatal stabbing of Michael Johnson on Oct. 22, 2021, on 4900 block of East Capital Street, SE.
In the Friday hearing, the defendant’s arraignment was followed by the result of a mental health observation in which Judge Demeo revealed that, according to doctors’, the defendant, who was represented by defense attorneys David Akulian and Julie Swaney, is competent to stand trial.
The hearing also discussed initial privacy assessment issues in regards to DNA testing. The prosecution has engaged a DNA expert and is in the process of evaluating evidence.
On Oct. 22, 2021, the defendant, victim, a parent and the parent’s child were driving in a car when the parent confronted Tyson over his repeated sexual advances towards the parent’s minor child, such as inapproproately texting the child and asking for sexual pictures.
When the parent threatened to have the defendant arrested, the defendant began speeding, eventually reaching the location of the crime. The victim and child exited the car while the parent attempted to restrain the defendant inside the vehicle.
The defendant managed to escape and proceeded to stab Johnson several times. The parent exited the vehicle and the defendant drove away from the scene.
The next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 13, 2023.
Read more about this case, here.
DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan addressed final matters with parties presiding over a murder case as the trial approaches.
Rakeem Willis, 31, and Jonathan Winston, 33, are both charged with three counts of first-degree murder while armed, one count of conspiracy, three counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm, and one count of fleeing from a law enforcement officer in connection to the shootings of 26-year-old Sean Shuler, 26-year-old Javon Abney, and 24-year-old Tyrik Hagood on Jan. 26, 2019, on the 1500 block of Fort Davis Place, SE.
During the Oct. 21 hearing, Judge Ryan conducted “a quick status hearing,” where he settled any unaddressed questions and concerns prior to Willis and Winston’s upcoming trial.
Winston’s defense attorney, Kevin Irving, inquired whether a cell site expert who will testify during the trial could appear via Webex. The prosecution concurred as did Judge Ryan.
According to court documents, phone records from the incident tying both defendants to the scene.
Parties are scheduled to return back to court on Oct. 24 as they begin the jury selection process and undergo trial.
On Oct. 20, a murder trial began with the jury hearing about the day a witness’s 15-year-old brother was shot and killed.
Malik Holston, 20, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder while armed in connection with the shooting of Gerald Watson on the 2900 block of Knox Place, SE on Dec. 13, 2018.
The prosecution highlighted the “beef,” or tension, between the Langston Lane apartments, where the victim lived with his family, and the Hartford apartments, where Holston presided.
Watson’s older brother said he remembered his little brother asking their mother if he could go play basketball at a nearby court after they arrived home from school. About “10 to 15 minutes” after his brother left, the witness said he heard gunshots nearby.
The witness said he ran out of their apartment and out to the parking lot looking for his brother. While outside, the witness said he heard a voice saying “Gerald’s in the hallway.” The witness ran up the stairs where he found his brother, upright, surrounded by ammunition casings.
The witness asked Watson, “you good?” to which Watson did not reply. The witness followed up by asking if he was “hit,” and Watson replied, “everywhere.”
Footage shows a responding officer running up the stairs to where Watson was laying, covered in blood. The officer stated Watson was “gasping for air and groaning in pain.” He had been hit multiple times in the legs, hand, and the side of his torso.
The officer proceeded to attempt to remove Watson’s outer layers in order to relay an accurate description of the wounds to medical personnel.
Three other witnesses testified to the security of the crime scene and obtaining the projectile of a bullet, from the body of the victim and the submission of it as evidence.
Defense attorney Matthew Wilson prefaced his argument with the statement that there is no physical evidence connecting Holston to the crime.
D.C. Witness previously reported,
During the hearing on Oct. 6, a witness testified that her deceased friend, Steffen Brathwaite, told her about his and Malik’s involvement in Watson’s death. “Me and my mans caught an op,” the witness said Braithwaite told her through a text message thread. She described “an op” as a rival and his “mans” as the defendant.
DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt scheduled the trial to continue on Oct. 24.
Read more about this case, here.
