Re-Opened Case for Man Convicted of Killing His Best Friend is Placed Under Seal

During a Nov. 15 hearing, DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo placed a homicide case under a private seal when the prosecutor said an important document was missing, which resulted in a vacated trial.

Eugene Burns, 30, was convicted in 2017 of first-degree murder while armed, carrying a pistol without a license, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for fatally shooting his best friend Onyekachi Osuchukwu III while on release from jail. The case was reopened on appeal in 2020.

Following the prosecution’s motion to postpone the trial date, Judge Demeo vacated the trial after speaking with both parties privately.

Instead, a status hearing was scheduled for Dec. 13, so counsel could set a new trial date.

In July 2017, the prosecution ruled Osuchukwu’s death as a premeditated murder following a drug-related dispute, according to court documents. Allegedly, Burns began to plot the murder of his friend, inviting him into DC to do so. On Nov. 14, 2015, the victim was lured into Burns’ mother’s house, where Burns allegedly shot him five times.

Osuchukwu was found by the police on the 2900 block of 2nd Street, SE in November 2015. He had succumbed to gunshot wounds by the time emergency workers arrived.

After fleeing the scene, Burns returned the next day with relatives to discover Osuchukwu dead.

In the first trial, after seeing all the evidence and hearing a testimony from Burns himself, who changed his original story to self-defense, the jury sided with the prosecution and convicted him of all charges.

Three Witnesses Deliver Testimony in Co-defendant Murder Trial

During a Nov. 15 jury trial, the prosecution in a murder trial discredited the defense’s expert witness, citing unqualified credentials and termination for behavioral conduct. Two other witnesses also delivered testimony at the proceeding.

James Mayfield, 23, and Robert Moses, 23, are charged with more than twelve counts each in connection to the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Jamahri Sydnor on Aug. 10, 2017, at the intersection of Montana and Saratoga Avenues, NE. The defendant’s charges include first-degree murder while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.

Mayfield and Moses were allegedly carrying .40 and .45 caliber guns and fired over ten rounds at people standing on Saratoga Avenue. One of the bullets struck Sydnor while she was driving, killing her.

Three other bystanders were struck in the shooting, sustaining injuries from the stray bullets.

As part of its argument on Nov. 15, the defense summoned a forensic biology specialist as an expert witness, but, during the prosecution’s redirect, it was revealed that the witness had been rejected as an expert witness in other matters twice on account of his “premedical sciences” degree.

The witness said the state court system did not accept this major despite the fact that he engaged in the same coursework as biology and chemistry students.

In addition, the witness disclosed that he had been terminated from two places of employment throughout his career, citing sexual harassment allegations as the cause for one of his terminations.

The defense failed to offer any redirect after the prosecution completed her cross-examination of the witness.

Following the witness’ testimony, the defense continued their cross-examination of another witness who was questioned during Monday’s proceeding. The man suffered a fractured leg and hip from the incident as he reportedly fell out of his wheelchair in response to the sound of gunshots.

Rather than receiving medical care at the scene, the victim said he had been driven home after the incident to drop items off before an ambulance was called to his residence. Three hours had reportedly elapsed between the time of his injury and the time of care.

Mayfield’s defense attorney, Veronice Holt, asked the witness why he waited 3 hours to seek treatment while in “excruciating pain.” The witness declined to answer the question, invoking his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent and avoid self-incrimination.

Holt revealed the witness’ criminal record, which includes several charges of drug possession and distribution.

The prosecution did not provide a redirect after the defense.

In light of the witness’s refusal to provide additional information, another witness, Phillip McDaniel, was called to the stand. This man allegedly acted as the getaway driver during the incident.

During his testimony, Holt played footage of his interview with detectives from Aug. 10, 2017, where he admittedly lied to officers.

There, McDaniel said he implicated a fictitious character he manufactured named “Beau” as the suspect. Several parallels existed between his own physical attributes and those of Beau’s, namely, height, build, complexion, and tattoos.

“I was trying to lie myself out of the situation,” the witness admitted after looking at the footage.

When Holt referenced his involvement in the incident, she questioned why he wore a ski mask in the middle of the summer if he was not involved in the crime.

“It’s the new style,” McDaniel responded.“Everyone wears them.”

Before Holt could ask any additional questions and the prosecution could begin their cross-examination, DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan stopped proceedings for the day.

Parties are scheduled to return to court on Nov. 16 to continue the trial.

Despite Disagreeing with Appeal Ruling, Judge Releases Convicted Murderer After 10 Years

After the DC Court of Appeals ruled that a man convicted of murder be released, DC Superior Court Chief Judge Anita Josey-Herring suspended his sentence during a hearing on Nov. 15. However, she said she did not agree with the finding that he was safe to return to the community.

Lamont Terry, 58, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and attempted armed robbery on Nov. 14, 2014. He was initially charged on Feb. 14, 2012, in connection with the death of 27-year-old Chet Matthews on the 1100 block of Ohio Drive, SW on May 25, 1992.

The case had gone cold for almost 20 years when a witness came forward and confessed to having helped Terry rob Matthews and witnessing Terry shoot Matthews with a shotgun, consistent with the murder weapon determined by the 1992 autopsy.

Terry was sentenced to 15 years to life for murder and an additional five years to 15 years for attempted armed robbery. He was held in prison from 2014 to 2022, when the DC Court of Appeals granted his appeal, mandating that Judge Josey-Herring suspend the rest of his sentence and release him.

On Tuesday, Judge Josey-Herring said that although she will comply with the order, she still believed him a danger to the community and was uncertain about the appellate court’s finding that he had been sufficiently rehabilitated.

“That’s easy to say when it’s not your family member who is dead,” she said.

Judge Josey-Herring also discussed the facts of the case, including that he walked free for almost 20 years despite the circumstances of the incident.

Terry pulled Matthews out of the car he was riding with a woman, according to court documents, then shot him while he was already on his knees.

“I thought it was a senseless murder, and I still do,” Judge Josey-Herring said.

The prosecutor said the judge could still find that Terry was not qualified for release because she could argue he didn’t meet the threshold of having an “extraordinary and compelling case for release.”

However, Judge Josey-Herring responded that with the mandate from the Court of Appeals, the Tuesday hearing was not the time to litigate the facts of the case.

Judge Josey-Herring resentenced Terry on both counts, but suspended the new sentence, leaving him on supervised probation for five years.

“Thank you. I can’t express it enough—thank you,” Terry told Judge Josey-Herring.

It will take three days for Terry to be processed out of the jail. He will also have to drug test upon request for six months, pay $200 no later than January 2023 and register as a life-time gun offender.

As the hearing concluded and Terry was brought out of the courtroom, Judge Josey-Herring turned her attention to members in the audience who had been disruptive, asking them to “maintain your composure so that I can do my job, thank you.”

Document: Homicide in Southeast

Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Nov. 15, on the 2500 block of Southern Avenue, SE.

According to a press release, at about 5:25 am, officers located 32-year-old Kelvin Blowe suffering an apparent gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Jurors Continue to Deliberate in Triple Homicide Trial

DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan resumed jury deliberations on Nov. 15 following a delay due to a juror reporting that he was ill.

Rakeem Willis, 31, is charged with three counts of first-degree murder and fleeing a law enforcement officer, among other charges, in relation to the shooting deaths of 26-year-old Javon Abney, 26-year-old Sean Shuler, and 24-year-old Tyrik Hagood on Jan. 26, 2019, on the 1500 block of Fort Davis Place, SE.

Parties are expected to reconvene on Nov. 16 as jurors continue to deliberate on the case.

‘You’re Making Me Feel Like a Criminal,’ Victim Yells at Prosecutor

During a Nov. 14 jury trial, prosecutors presented clothing worn by a co-defendant to the jury, and a witness requested to end his testimony in a 2017 murder case.

On Aug. 10, 2017, Robert Moses, 23 and James Mayfield, 22, approached the intersection of Montana and Saratoga Avenues, NE while armed with .40 and .45 caliber handguns. Collectively, the defendants fired over ten rounds at people standing on Saratoga Avenue. One of the bullets struck 17-year-old Jamahri Sydnor in the head as she was driving, killing her.

Three other bystanders were also struck and injured by stray bullets.

Moses, 23, was arrested on Aug. 10, 2017, while Mayfield, 22, was arrested on Dec. 28, 2017. They are charged with more than a dozen counts each, including first-degree murder while armed, assault with the intent to kill and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.

A man who was injured during the Aug. 10 shootings said, when he heard gunshots near the Montana and Saratoga Avenue intersection, he promptly jumped out of his wheelchair. His leg then gave out, causing him to fracture his right hip and leg.

The man was already partly paralyzed and rendered wheelchair-bound from having been previously shot in his back.

The witness recalled that when he fell, he “felt a bone break… a sharp, shooting pain running up and down my leg… starting from my hip going all the way down.” He added that because he was in a state of shock and panic from his injury, he couldn’t see any shooters, nor any other victims, nor anyone else running around.

The prosecutor asked the witness a series of questions to discern his state at the time, then played recordings of initial Grand Jury testimony from 2017 for reference.

The witness recalled that during his testimony, he was “just trying to go” and “never wanted to be there.” To expedite the process, he admitted to tailoring some responses so there would be fewer follow-up questions. He denied being under the influence of any substances at the time, but later clarified that “of course he was using drugs.”

The witness, who has a prior criminal record, said he was under the impression that the only answers that mattered were those directly relevant to the homicide case at hand, never expecting that “anything could be used against him.”

When the prosecutor began asking him questions about his initial call to 911 in order to verify select details, he refused to answer, yelling “now you’re making me feel like a criminal. I ain’t answering any more of your questions.”

The witness was excused to consult with his lawyer regarding how to proceed.

The prosecution also called a custodian of records with experience reviewing and authenticating stored data records for Instagram and Facebook accounts.

After being shown records from an Instagram account, the witness identified that the account’s username had been changed at least five times between September and October 2017 but never by the account’s actual owner.

The witness also noted that the account owner never verified the account with their listed phone number.

The prosecution also called a member of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Internal Affairs Bureau and showed surveillance footage of Mayfield directly following his arrest in December 2017.

The footage highlighted Mayfield’s slim physique. Prosecutors further emphasized this by displaying to jurors the child’s-sized black shirt Mayfield wore in the video.

DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan scheduled the trial to continue on Nov. 15.

A Multi-Sex Offender Awaits Final Results for Independent DNA Testing

During a Nov. 15 hearing, prosecutors anticipated how long it would take for the defense to receive completed results from their independent DNA testing

A DC man, 35, is charged with first-degree sex abuse while armed and has been found guilty of sex abuse against two or more victims.

According to court documents, the first assault took place on July. 5, 2011, on the 900 block of Sheppard Street, NW. The second on Sept. 3, 2011, on 13th Street, NW and Monroe Street, NW.

The prosecution mentioned that two different shipments of DNA evidence were sent to defense attorney Kevann Gardner one being a perp kit and the other being extracts and cutting.

Defense attorney Kevann Gardner confirmed that he received the correct evidence sometime last week and testing would resume sometime in February.

The prosecution may also need to do additional testing.

No motions have been set.

The next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 13

Homicide Defendant Waives Right to DNA Testing

DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan held a status hearing on Nov. 15 for a homicide defendant who decided to waive his right to DNA testing after being provided with all the evidence that was found in relation to the crime in 2015.

Oscar Ramos, who was arrested when he was 32-years-old, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, assault with the intent to kill while armed, and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for allegedly shooting two victims on May 28, 2015, on Interstate 295 at Exit 1 in Southwest DC.

One of the victims, 50-year-old Pedro Alvarado, was pronounced dead at the scene. The other victim was treated for life-threatening injuries at a local hospital.

Police suspect the motive was road rage.

Ramos was arrested and charged for the crime in 2022, nearly 7 years later.

The next hearing will be held on Oct.26, 2023. The defendant is currently being held at the DC Jail.

Document: 19-Year-Old Killed in Southeast

Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Nov. 13, on the 100 block of 58th Street, SE.

According to a press release, at about 1:54 pm, officers located 19-year-old James Gillespie suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Document: Vehicle Sought in Connection to a Non-Fatal Shooting

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 Nov. 4, on the 2700 block of Bladesburg Road, NE.

According to a press release, at about 12:22 pm, officers located an adult male victim suffering from an apparent gunshot wound.

Phone Records Connect Co-Defendants in Murder Case

During a Nov. 14 trial, four witnesses testified on evidence presented to the jury.

Derek Turner, 31, is charged with first-degree murder while armed and conspiracy and Ronnika Jennings, 44, is charged with conspiracy in connection to the shooting of 28-year-old Andrew McPhatter on March 5, 2017, on the 3500 block of Wheeler Road, SE.

The third defendant, 33-year-old Duan Hill, is charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice in this matter as well.

Turner is also charged with first-degree murder while armed for allegedly shooting 23-year-old Devin Hall on Jan. 7, 2017 on the 3500 block of 6th Street, SE.

The first witness, a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective in the homicide unit, continued his testimony on the interview recording he conducted with Jennings that the prosecution presented on Nov. 10.

In the video, the witness threatens Jennings with polygraph tests and states, “you’re a tough lady” and he wishes “he could treat you bad,” but that she was too “stubborn.” Jennings willingly submits to the possibility of polygraph testing and willingly surrenders her phone as well.

Another MPD officer testified to the search and seizure he performed on Turner’s cell after a search warrant was filed to investigate Jennings’s involvement with the case. Inside the cell, the officer found several documents and a piece of paper with phone numbers scribbled on it and labeled “Fatz” stashed under Turner’s mattress.

An expert witness from T-Mobile appeared to confirm the records T-Mobile acquired and stored from Turner’s phone included calls and text messages to Jennings. The records reflected the same phone numbers that were scribbled on the piece of paper in Turner’s cell.

DC Superior Court Judge Marisa J. Demeo set the trial to continue on Nov. 15.

The prosecution expects to rest by the end of the day Tuesday.

Document: Suspect Sought in a Stabbing Offense

Metropolitan Police Department detectives are asking for the public’s help in locating a suspect in connection to a stabbing that occurred on Nov. 4, on the 1700 block of Kalorama Street, NW.

According to a press release, at about 7:15 pm, officers located a female victim suffering from an apparent stab wound.

Prosecution Presents Interrogation Video Between Defendant and Witness

During a Nov. 10 hearing, two witnesses testified on evidence presented to the jury.

Derek Turner, 31, and Ronnika Jennings, 44, are charged with first-degree murder while armed and conspiracy in connection to the shooting of 28-year-old Andrew McPhatter on March 5, 2017 on the 3500 block of Wheeler Road, SE.

Jennings is also charged with assault with intent to kill and several counts of accessory of murder after the fact.

The third defendant, 33-year-old Duan Hill, is charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice in this matter as well.

Turner is also charged with first-degree murder while armed for allegedly shooting 23-year-old Devin Hall on Jan. 7, 2017, on the 3500 block of 6th Street, SE.

A Special Agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) continued his testimony from the Nov. 9 trial.

The prosecution presented recordings from several calls Turner made to his former girlfriend as well as Jennings and his mother.

During cross-examination, Turner’s defense attorney Michael Madden questioned the witness’s familiarity with the DC Jail phone system. He also emphasized that the witness has no knowledge regarding how many other incarcerated individuals contacted the defendant’s ex-girlfriend.

A Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective in the homicide unit leading the Hall case testified to his interrogation of Jennings, who was a former employee of the MPD herself. Acting as a customer service representative, Jennings had access to the entire MPD database. The prosecutors in the case accused her of utilizing her access to the database in order to run the names for her co-conspirators and friends.

The prosecution presented a video recording of Jennings’s interrogation with the detective.

During his investigation, the witness testified to seeing Jenning’s name come up several times. After establishing Jenning’s as a common occurrence in the case, the witness decided to bring her in for questioning.

“You want to tell us how active you’ve been with Derek?” the detective asked in the video.

Jennings explained that “she doesn’t know Fats like that.” Fats is Turner’s nickname to which Jennings more commonly knew him by.

In the video, Jennings was very insistent that she did not know any more than what she was telling the detective.

In response, the detective told her, “I have nothing to lose. You have everything. You have mouths to feed… you have bills, you have everything.”

Similarly, while talking about Turner’s incarceration, the detective told Jennings “you might be sitting next to him.”

DC Superior Court Judge Marisa J. Demeo set the trial to continue on Nov. 14.

The prosecution expects to rest early next week.

Juror Sickness Delays Deliberations in Murder Trial

After a juror reported he had fallen ill with the flu, DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan decided that the jury would not continue deliberations in a murder trial on Nov. 14.

Arguments closed on Nov. 8, and the jury has been deliberating since. Early Monday morning, however, one juror called into the court to report he could not make it to the courthouse, because he was sick.

“Well, it was the easiest jury for awhile,” Judge Ryan joked. Now, he said, they had to determine whether the juror had come down with just the flu and not COVID-19, which the parties avoided naming.

“One person’s flu is another person’s… who knows,” Judge Ryan added, trailing off.

Defense attorney Howard McEachern suggested that the sick juror call in again in the afternoon, and again the next morning, to confirm it’s not something more serious. If he is able to return and no other jurors are sick, Judge Ryan said, the deliberations can resume Tuesday morning.

“We do have notes that bring the latter part of the week into concern, though,” Judge Ryan said. Several jurors had suggested that they had commitments on Thursday and could not deliberate on that day.

A co-defendant in the trial, 33-year-old Johnathan Winston, was acquitted of murder charges on Nov. 8 for lack of sufficient evidence. Willis could more firmly be pinned to the scene of the crime than Winston, using his cell phone records.

In closing arguments, McEachern asked the jury to consider testimony that suggested Willis didn’t know any of the victims and lacked motive. The prosecutor noted more than a dozen calls from Willis to Shuler that day that, he said, suggested otherwise.

The jury has, thus far, deliberated for more than two full days.

Parties are expected to reconvene on Nov. 15 as jurors continue to deliberate on the case.

Prosecutor, Witness Clash Over Grand Jury Testimony in Murder Trial

The prosecution in a Nov. 10 murder trial brought out a Grand Jury transcript of a witness’s previous testimony when he described diving to the ground after hearing gunshots go off, despite his repeated insistence that he now remembers nothing about the incident.

On Aug. 10, 2017, according to court documents, around a dozen shots went off at the intersection of Saratoga and Montana Avenues, NE, one of which struck and killed 17-year-old Jamahri Sydnor. James Mayfield and Robert Moses, both 23, face 13 and 25 counts, respectively, including first-degree murder and charges for weapon possession among others in relation to the incident.

A long-time native of the Saratoga neighborhood, who had returned on Aug. 10, 2017, to help out his grandmother and to celebrate his upcoming birthday was the only disagreeable witness out of the four who testified on Thursday.

The prosecutor told the jury that the witness overheard the shots that day, and instinctively dove to the ground.

The witness, however, was consistently resistant to providing testimony about the day. “Let’s just get this over with,” he muttered when Judge Raffinan first addressed him.

“I don’t wanna be here,” he told the prosecutor soon after, in direct examination. He had to be subpoenaed, he explained, and was forcibly brought to the courthouse for the trial.

The prosecutor produced his testimony to the Grand Jury in July 2018 ahead of Moses and Mayfield’s indictments. The witness repeatedly said he did not remember what he told the Grand Jury, and grew visibly frustrated as the prosecutor attempted to refresh his memory.

He said that on the day he testified, he was “snatched from the jail,” where he had been held pending unrelated charges. “Same type of Marshals that snatched me off the streets and made me come here,” the witness added.

The witness returned to the stand on the next trial day to finish his testimony.

The first witnesses called by the prosecutors during Thursday’s trial was a cell tower expert who spoke about the location of the defendant’s cell phones throughout the day of the shooting.

During direct examination, the witness testified to what cell towers each defendant’s phone connected to before, during, and after the time of the shooting. He also explained to the jury that, at one point, the two phone numbers were calling and receiving calls from one another, despite appearing to be in relatively the same location.

Later, there was a delay with the prosecution’s second witness of the day because of unforeseen confusion and miscommunication between the witness and the prosecution. When the witness came up the stand to testify, Veronice Holt, defense counsel for Mayfield, realized the woman had been sitting in the courtroom while she had been doing her cross examination of the cell site expert.

Because the witness was not supposed to be in the courtroom while another witness was testifying, defense counsel sought to strike the witness. However, after discussing with the prosecution and believing that there was no malice involved, Holt advocated for inclusion of the witness with the condition that she keep the scope of her testimony to what she testified about during the Grand Jury.

DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan ruled that the witness could testify and her testimony could go beyond what she spoke about during the Grand Jury. However, due to time constraints, she was delayed and is scheduled to take the stand during the week of Nov. 14.

A third witness was called, a man who worked at a store in the Langdon Park neighborhood the day before the shooting. He said that on that day, Aug. 9, 2017, he saw three men get out of a car and pass his store.

He said he then heard gunshots, explaining that he first thought the three men had fired them. However, when he reviewed the store’s surveillance footage, he saw another man, running away from the three men and holding his hand out behind him as if brandishing a gun.

According to court documents, an incident on Aug. 9, 2017, in the ongoing feud between a group of men in the Langdon Park and a group in the Saratoga neighborhoods.

Court documents state the individual fleeing was from Saratoga, and to retaliate for his having fired shots at them, the three individuals, suspected to be Moses, Mayfield and an accomplice, allegedly planned to do the same in the Saratoga neighborhood the next day. That was what eventually resulted in the death of Sydnor.

However, the witness testified on Nov. 10 that he thought of the three men, all three were “smaller than me,” then clarifying that he meant in both height and weight. Mayfield does not fit this description.

The parties are scheduled to reconvene on Nov. 14.

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