Metropolitan Police Department detectives are asking for the public’s help in identifying a suspect in connection to a third-degree sex abuse offense that occurred on Jan. 10, on the 1300 block of Otis Place, NW.
According to a press release, at about 11:10 am, the suspect forcefully engaged in unwanted sex contact with the victim then fled the scene.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Jan. 11, on the 3900 block of South Capitol Street, SW.
According to a press release, at about 9:39 pm, officers located two adult male victims suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. One of the victims was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
The decedent has been identified as 23-year-old Anthony Richardson.
Nearly three months after the homicide of 19-year-old Reginald Cooper and 19-year-old Davonte Berkley on the 1300 block of Congress Street, SE on Oct. 17, 2022, officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) arrested 19-year-old Amarii Fontanelle.
On Jan. 12 Fontanelle was arrested and charged with first-degree murder while armed.
On Jan. 11, the third day of a murder trial, a forensic pathologist confirmed the victim’s cause of death.
Clifton Browne, 58, is charged with second-degree murder in connection to the deadly beating of 76-year-old Luther Brooks on the 1300 block of Kalmia Road, NW on Sept. 27, 2021. Browne was the nephew of Brooks’ landlord’s close friend.
During cross examination by Joseph Fay, Browne’s defense attorney, an expert from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner confirmed that Brooks died from an inability to breathe due to fractured ribs.
The expert said she could clearly see blunt force injury to the victim’s head, right side of his neck, ribs, arms and hands.
“Could these type of injuries be caused by a fall from a sitting position?” the prosecutor asked.
“This would unlikely be caused by a fall from a seated position,” she replied.
The expert also noted that the victims injuries were not constant with a fall from a flight of stairs. “It would have to be 50 stairs and the surface of the stairs would also have to be taken into account.”
According to a 911 call, played in court on Jan. 10, the victim’s landlord told a dispatcher Brooks fell down the stairs. The witness later said she lied.
A close friend of the victim’s landlord, who suggested her nephew Browne assist with the home renovations, said she and the defendant visited the landlord’s home the day before the incident.
When questioned about the tenant and victim’s relationship, she said she was unaware of any issues between them. However, she said there had been tension between them a few months before the incident because the tenant asked Brooks to leave so she could sell the house.
DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo scheduled the trial to resume on Jan. 12.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives made an arrest in connection to a non-fatal shooting that occurred on Jan. 9, on the 100 block of Monroe Street, NE.
According to a press release, at about 10:55 am, the suspect and the victim were involved in an argument. During the argument, the suspect brandished a weapon, and the victim was shot.
On Jan. 10, 19-year-old Ilon Melson was arrested and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon.
As a homicide trial resumed on Jan. 10, an eyewitness to the crime said she heard men fighting before the victim was mortally wounded.
Clifton Browne, 58, is charged with second-degree murder in conncection to the deadly beating of 76-year-old Luther Brooks on the 1300 block of Kalmia Road, NW on Sept. 27, 2021. Browne was the nephew of Brooks’ landlord’s close friend.
The victim’s neighbor, who witnessed the incident, said she was working from home in her second-floor home office on the day of the murder. She said she could see the backyard and back alley from where her desk was positioned.
She said around 1:45 p.m., she was sitting at her desk when she began to hear two men fighting and cussing.
“Somebody was very angry, cussing and very loud,” she said.
She said she got up from her desk and looked out the window, seeing someone holding a large object and swinging it over his head repeatedly.
“After they were done swinging, he dropped the object and climbed up the stairs up to the second floor of the home,” she said.
She said she continued to hear more cussing and rumbling around as if things were being moved around in the apartment.
She described the man holding the object as being an African American man wearing dark clothing. He looked to be in his late 40’s, early 50’s, she said.
Defense lawyer Joseph Fay noted, during cross-examination, that the witness told the Grand Jury that she thought the man was 6 feet and of medium build.
The owner of the residence where the incident occurred testified that the victim lived in the basement of her dwelling for six years.
According to the owner, she told the victim six months before the murder that she was going to sell the house and encouraged him to leave.
She said she started asking around for contractors to undertake repairs and add various additions to the house during those six months.
The witness said that, on the morning of the incident, she picked Browne up and spoke to him briefly about the many improvements she wanted made as well as how the downstairs tenant was taking his time leaving but should do so by the weekend.
Browne informed her that he would speak to the victim “man to man.”
When they arrived at the residence, she gave Browne a tour and talked about the issues that needed to be resolved.
She said, a few minutes later she heard a knock on the basement door, followed by what sounded like someone kicking open a door.
After that, she could hear arguing and cussing from the basement, so she went downstairs.
She said she saw the victim holding a big walking stick and observed him banging it once into Browne’s chest.
Browne then got on top of the victim straddling him and repeatedly hitting him.
The victim was then brutally struck by Browne while he was on top of him.
Browne released the victim and allegedly cried out for assistance.
The witness said she contacted 911. The prosecution played the 911 call for the courtroom.
We have an elderly man who fell and harmed himself, the witness told the operator.
“He fell down the stairs,” Browne said in the background. The witness confirmed.
How many stairs did he fall down, the dispatcher inquired? About six or seven, the witness retorted.
The witness said she lied because Browne kept reminding her that he was his father’s caretaker and that he was also her best-friend’s nephew.
Browne and the witness proceeded to Home Depot, bought supplies, and started working on the house after the EMT had taken the victim to the hospital.
Brooks’ relatives are currently suing the witness.
The victim’s son also testified that he visited his father in the intensive care unit at the hospital on the day of the incident.
“He was in bad state,” he said. “He had to get emergency surgery on his skull, so his head was swollen.”
On Oct. 8, 2021, he said the family made the determination to remove the victim’s life support system.
DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo scheduled the trial to resume on Jan. 11.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are asking for the public’s help in locating a vehicle in connection to a non-fatal shooting and attempted armed robbery offense that occurred on Jan. 8, on the 200 block Tingey Street, SE.
According to a press release, at about 4:10 am, the suspect exited a vehicle, brandished a handgun and attempted to rob a victim. During the attempt, the suspect shot the victim.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Jan. 7, on the 1200 block of Half Street, SE.
According to a press release, at about 7:55 pm, officer located 20-year-old Terry Clark with an apparent gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Jan. 7, on the 2000 block of Gallaudet Street, NE.
According to a press release, at about 3:00 am, officers located 36-year-old Joshua Parker suffering from an apparent stab wound. He was pronounced dead on the scene.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Jan. 7, on the 1000 block of Quincy Street, NE.
According to a press release, at about 3:56 am, officers located 13-year-old Karon Blake from apparent gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
On Jan. 6, a murder defendant was scheduled for a new hearing in April when a motions schedule is slated to be set.
Chad Hawthorne, 41, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, possessing a firearm during a crime of violence and unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction in connection to the shooting of 35-year-old Antonio Bassett on the 3900 block of Pennsylvania Avenue, SE on May 22, 2017.
During a March trial, jurors deliberated for more than a week but could not come to a decision on any of his charges. On March 21, DC Superior Court Judge Robert Okun ruled a mistrial.
The parties stated there were no motions to be filed at this time during the hearing on Friday. Counsel also reported that there were no issues to resolve in the case.
Jury selection for the retrial that was excepted to start on Oct. 3 was also vacated.
DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo scheduled the next hearing for April 28.
DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo sentenced a sex abuse defendant to 2.5 years in prison on Jan. 6.
Paul Johnson, 26, is charged with attempted first-degree child sexual abuse in connection with an incident involving a four-year-old victim in 2018.
He pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree child sexual abuse in January 2019.
According to the proffer of facts, Johnson digitally penetrated, performed oral sex and other sexual acts on a four-year-old boy and days after the rape the victim told his mom who then reported it to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
While speaking with forensic psychologists days after the crime, the victim said that despite his repeated requests for the defendant to stop during the sexual attack, the defendant persisted in raping him.
When initially speaking with police, the defendant acknowledged raping the victim and confessed to using phencyclidine or PCP the night before the crime.
“He made the decision deliberately and intentionally,” the prosecutor said. “He was alone with the victim and took the opportunity to rape that little boy.”
According to the prosecution, Johnson had a number of tests, and the results of the scientific research revealed that he has a strong propensity to commit crimes again. The test results also revealed that he is attracted to minors.
Johnson’s defense attorney, Ronald Resetarits said Johnson had no prior convictions or violence prior to this offense.
“There was no planning and scheming,” Restearits said. “He hides himself in his room because he feels ashamed. As a result of his grief and guilt, he avoids talking to other family members.”
Additionally, Resetarits emphasized that Johnson was excellent during his three years of house confinement and exceedingly cooperative. He worked at a number of jobs while under house arrest and maintained regular contact with Pretrial Services about his working hours, he said.
“To the victim, I’m sorry for the bad things I did to you. You did nothing wrong,” Johnson read from a letter he wrote for the sentencing. “I hope you don’t do this to anybody or hurt yourself because of what I did to you. I hope you become a good person and stay out of trouble.”
The defendant was allegedly sexually molested by his older brother when he was younger.
Judge Demeo recognized the circumstances of the case and sentenced the defendant to 30-months in prison and 15 years of supervised release.
“His voice isn’t heard,” she said. “At the time of the offense, he told the defendant to stop but his voice wasn’t heard. He was powerless. The four year old had no choice. This isn’t about consent. A 22-year-old having sex with a four-year-old means the four-year-old had no power.”
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are asking for the public’s help in locating a suspect in connection to a misdemeanor sex abuse offense that occurred on Jan. 4, on the 700 block of 7th Street, NW.
According to a press release, at about 9:57 am, the suspect engaged in unwanted sexual contact with the victim then fled the scene.
Metropolitan Police Department detectives are asking for the public’s help in locating a vehicle in connection to a non-fatal shooting that occurred on Jan. 5, on the 3400 block of Croffut Place, SE.
According to a press release, at about 3:38 pm, officers located an adult male victim suffering from an apparent gunshot wound.
D.C. Witness observed a 30 percent decrease in domestic violence cases involving simple assault in the District of Columbia after the 2020 pandemic.
In 2022, there have been 84 domestic violence cases reported by D.C. Witness.
The District of Columbia describes domestic violence in their legal code as “ a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner, dating partner, or family member. The term “domestic violence” includes physical, sexual, emotional, economic, or psychological actions or threats of actions that influence another person.”
The Council on Criminal Justice reported the coronavirus pandemic exacerbated domestic violence rates because victims were confined to their homes and forced to spend time with their abusers due to stay-at-home orders.
Assault with a dangerous weapon is the most prevalent type of domestic violence incident, representing 58.8 percent of reported cases. Furthermore, simple assault is the second most common incident, being 17.6 percent of the total. Sex abuse, 13.2 percent, and threats, 10.4 percent, were the least common incidents. The total number of incidents for threats over the three year period is 19. The total number of sex abuse of the time span is 24. There was a total number of 32 reports for simple assault and assault with a dangerous weapon is 107 reports.
This chart depicts the relationship between the type of charge and its corresponding sentence. This comparison shows how domestic violence defendants are more commonly charged with firearm offenses and simple assault.
Between 2020 and 2022, 16 defendants were sentenced with simple assault with an incarceration period of two months. Additionally, 24 defendants were sentenced with firearm offenses with an incarceration period of nearly 8.5 months.
According to D.C. Code, threats applied to “whoever threatens within the District of Columbia to kidnap any person or to injure the person of another or physically damage the property of any person or of another person”. D.C. Witness reported charges of threats, including kidnapping and bodily harm.
The highest number of threats were in 2021 with eight reported incidents. Additionally, there were five reported threats in 2020 and six during 2022.
According to D.C. Defense Attorney, Shawn Sukumar, assault with a dangerous weapon is “any assault defined under the simple assault statute that is committed with a weapon that is defined under DC as a dangerous weapon, making it aggravated.”
D.C. Witness reported charges for assault with a dangerous weapon throughout the years 2020 through 2022, as depicted in the chart above. From 2020 to 2022, assault with a dangerous weapon saw a 53.57 percent increase.
On April 13, 2021, Miles Sullivan pleaded guilty to attempted assault with a dangerous weapon for shooting his girlfriend. The incident occurred at a laundromat with Sullivan pointing a firearm at his pregnant girlfriend before shooting her in the chest.
The victim described Sullivan as having anger management issues, according to a D.C. Witness article. Sullivan was sentenced to two years in prison with three years on supervised release.
D.C. Witness also reported charges of sex abuse, which ranges through four different levels from penetration to sexual contact. The chart shows an increase in sex abuse cases in 2022, with a total of 10 reported incidents. D.C. Witness also documented six sex abuse charges during 2021 and eight incidents in 2020.
On Nov. 21, a 30-year-old defendant pleaded guilty to second-degree child sex abuse. An anonymous phone call was received by Child Protective Services in Prince George County, Md, on August 31, 2021 in connection with the sexual abuse of a 9-year-old girl.
The victim stated the defendant, her father, exposed himself to her. The victim described being scared and shaking. The defendant ordered her to put her mouth on his private part.
The defendant confessed to police officers when questioned about the sexual abuse. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 16.
According to the DC Code, “simple assault is committed by an individual when an attempt or effort, with force or violence, to injure another person.” D.C. Witness reported 32 charges of simple assault throughout 2020, 2021, and 2022. Charges of simple assault decreased from 2020 to 2022. Specifically, there was a peak of 13 simple assault charges in 2020, which has decreased to nine reported incidents in 2022. This change from 2020 to 2022, is a 30.77 percent decrease from 13 to 9 reports.
On June 6, when Charles Augburn pleaded guilty to simple assault and unlawful possession of a firearm due to prior conviction for an incident on Jan. 30. The altercation between the defendant and the defendant’s girlfriend occurred with her accusing Augburn of flirting with other women. His girlfriend allegedly revealed a taser during the argument with Augburn brandishing a firearm, according to D.C. Witness.
Augburn registered as a gun offender and was sentenced for supervised release through the Youth Rehabilitation Act (YRA).
While the aforementioned cases do not include murder charges, domestic violence cases can escalate and result in victim fatalities.
On June 9, 2021, Steven Robinson pleaded guilty to second-degree murder while armed for shooting his girlfriend Shanika Williams on July 12, 2020. On the day of the shooting, MPD officers arrived at the scene of the crime and pronounced Williams dead after identifying a gunshot wound on her chest.
During the sentencing, Robinson apologized, saying “it was in cold blood…I don’t even think I will probably ever be at peace. She was my friend.”
After pleading guilty, the defendant was sentenced to 12 years in prison, as well as five years of supervised release.
Similarly, on Oct. 3, 2022, a jury found 57-year-old Darnell Sterling guilty of second-degree murder. The victim, his 34-year-old girlfriend Olga Ooro, had previously filed for a stay away order that Sterling violated at the time of the murder.
Ooro was reported missing on July 17, 2020 and her body has still not been found.
According to D.C. Witness reports, this incident was the culmination of multiple physical altercations, as Ooro previously reported that Sterling busted her lip and injured her knees in April 2019.
Sterling is still held at the DC Jail and his sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 2.
Overall, the impact of the pandemic varied across different domestic violence offenses: threats, sex abuse, simple assault, and assault with a dangerous weapon. It is crucial to note that this research solely pertains to cases reported between Jan. 1, 2020 to Nov. 15, 2022 in the District of Columbia.
