Co-Defendants Enter Not Guilty Plea in Homicide of 13-Year-Old Boy

On Sept. 30, co-defendants on track for a 2024 trial were scheduled for a hearing to discuss DNA evidence in the case.

Koran Jackson, 22; Reginald Steele, 23; Tyiion Kyree Freeman, Stephen Nelson, 21; and Aaron Dequan Brown,26, are charged with multiple counts of conspiracy, assault with the intent to kill while armed, murder in the first degree, carrying a pistol without a license, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence in connection to the shooting of 13-year-old Malachi Lukes.

Jackson and Brown are also charged with tampering with evidence and possession of an unregistered firearm or destructive device. Nelson is also charged with being an accessory after the fact while armed.

DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt also arraigned the five defendants Friday. All the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.

During the hearing, counsel also discussed DNA testing. The prosecution is expected to receive all DNA testing back towards the end of October.

The defense requested additional evidence and suggested waiting longer to give the prosecution more time to have it all available.

A hearing on Dec. 9 to discuss the results and whether the defense will test DNA independently.

Prior to the start of the hearing, Judge Brandt addressed the courtroom’s robust security, namely the increased number of marshals, attributing it to a “security concern” with having all five defendants in one hearing.

On the 600 Block of Rhode Island Avenue, NW where the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) found Lukes lying in an alley not breathing and suffering from what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the neck, court documents state.

Police also found another minor victim within the area suffering from a gunshot wound to the leg. According to an autopsy report, a bullet entered Lukes’ left torso and pierced the lower left lung and the heart’s pulmonary artery.

According to court documents, the defendants were involved in the “3500” and “Really Ready Gang.” They are located within Park Morton, Columbia Heights Village, and Rock Creek Church Road. The defendants were allegedly getting revenge for the killing of a fellow gang member in the same area.

Judge Grants Continuance in Homicide Case As Prosecution Awaits DNA Evidence

DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo granted a continuance for counsel presiding over a homicide as they work to obtain evidence.

Marcel Jackson, 35, is charged with first-degree murder in connection to the stabbing of 22-year-old, Antonio Jones, also known as “G-Baby,” on May 8, on the 2800 block of Hartford Street, SE.

During the Sept. 30 hearing, the prosecution said DNA evidence was submitted to the lab and results are expected in December.

Jackson allegedly stabbed James 27 times and did not sustain any defensive wounds, according to court documents.

Court documents also allege that the incident ensued after James asked Jackson for a cigarette. Jackson allegedly proceeded to follow James up the street when he left the scene.

An unknown individual reportedly ran down the street, yelling “that dude just stabbed up G-Baby.”

Jackson’s defense attorney, Dana Page, requested additional time to pursue the case.

Judge Demeo granted a continuance to parties, providing them with more time to settle matters.

The next hearing is scheduled on Oct. 27.

Prosecution and Defense Argue Over Validity of Evidence in Murder Case

In a Sept. 29 jury trial, the prosecution presented photos and DNA evidence tying a defendant to murder. The defense refuted these claims, asserting that the evidence is only circumstantial.

Darnell Sterling, 57, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder on July 24, 2020, in connection to the sudden disappearance of his girlfriend, 34-year-old Olga Ooro. Sterling was allegedly the last person seen with Ooro before she was reported missing the week before.

During the trial on Thursday, two expert witnesses took the stand. One displayed photos captured from Ooro’s apartment, where the murder is alleged to have occurred, while the other discussed the results of DNA tests.

A carpet cutting collected from the rear center of Sterling’s car reportedly contained “male DNA” that “cannot be visually excluded as the defendants.”

In addition to a carpet cutting, forensic scientists also conducted DNA testing of blood found on the right wall of Ooro’s apartment. Tests revealed the presence of a female contributor that a scientist said matches Ooro’s DNA.

The prosecution used this evidence to suggest that Sterling killed Ooro. They also used security footage from the night of her disappearance to further corroborate this argument.

Security footage from the night of July 17, 2020, shows a black man who reportedly resembles Sterling exiting the elevator of Ooro’s apartment with a cart. The cart appears to be holding a body-shaped figure wrapped in a blanket.Sterling is then seen placing this item in his car.

In response to the prosecution’s claims that Sterling murdered his girlfriend, his defense attorney, Howard McEachern, stated that their assertions are “so devoid of evidence for the court to even consider a charge.”

DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan set the trial to resume on Sept. 30.

Expert Witness Connects Six Shootings to Defendants in Murder Trial

On Sept. 29, the prosecution used expert witnesses to connect six shootings to the three co-defendants who are being tried for a murder.

Derek Turner, 31, and co-defendant Ronnika Jennings, 44, are charged with first-degree murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and conspiracy in connection with the shooting of 28-year-old Andrew McPhatter on March 5, 2017, on the 3500 block of Wheeler Road, SE. Jennings is accused of sharing criminal information with Turner during her time working as a clerk for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

The third co-defendant Duan Hill, 33, is charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice. 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.

During Thursday’s trial, the prosecution focused on six different shootings in a timeline of events from November 2016 to March 2017 during questioning.

A forensic firearm specialist, who is a “distinguished member of the Association of Firearm and Tool Mark Examiners (AFTE),” testified about the connection between the six shootings.

The witness confirmed that the casings from all six shootings matched the weapon, a .10 millimeter Glock found in Turner’s car seven days after McPhatter’s shooting.

Defense attorney Michael Madden cross-examined the witness on the reliability of his comparison of the bullet casings. He referenced an article by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) critiquing AFTE’s methodology.

Madden said there was no evidence connecting the defendants to the shootings.

DC Superior Court Judge Marisa J. Demeo set the trial to continue on Oct. 3.

Document: Police Arrest 25-Year-Old for Non-Fatal Shooting

Detectives with the Metropolitan Police Department arrested a 25-year-old, charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon (gun).

According to the press release, officers found an adult male victim on Dec. 7, 2021, suffering from a gunshot wound on the 1400 block of Fairmont Street, NW. The victim was treated at a local hospital for non life-threatening injuries.

Issues Arise Between Parties About Evidence in Homicide Trial

During a Sept. 28 homicide trial, defense attorney Michael Madden objected to the prosecutor’s choice of evidence, saying the defense was unprepared to discuss evidence from social media platforms.

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.

Jennings is specifically accused of sharing criminal intelligence with Turner during her time working as a clerk for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). The third co-defendant Duan Hill, 33, is charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice.

The prosecution introduced a Special Agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) who identified both Turner and Jennings from his job. This witness stated that he has investigated the feud between the Wahler Place and Trenton Park neighborhoods by undergoing witness interviews and examining police reports and databases.

The prosecution began interrogating the witness on social media sources, such as Instagram and YouTube. The prosecutor also questioned witnesses on google searches.

“I feel almost unprepared to cross-examine [this witness],” Madden said. He stated that the prosecution needs to anticipate what specific exhibits they will be referencing throughout their direct examination.

He also questioned this witness’ qualifications to testify about the feud between Wahler Place and Trenton Park. He said the prosecution has access to representatives from these neighborhoods that could testify about the feud instead.

After speaking with the prosecutor, Madden said he does not anticipate further delays and the prosecution identified the relevant documents that they will be referencing.

Madden then stated that he will review those documents during the weekend. The prosecutor agreed to not exploring issues related to Instagram and google searches during the current witness’s testimony.

The prosecution also introduced three other witnesses. The first was a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer, who showed video footage of Turner’s arrest on March 11, 2017, from another officer’s body-worn camera (BWC). The officer testified that Turner’s arrest was without incident. “He was just calm, respectful. Just acting normal,” the officer said.

He also said police officers on the site confiscated two telephones as evidence.

A MPD detective that works in the homicide branch testified about the McPhatter shooting. He discussed searching a vehicle that was seized from the site. “There was a glock, a 10 mm firearm” in the glove compartment,” he said.

He also mentioned obtaining two search warrants to undergo a complete extraction, or a content download, of two cell-phones that were collected during Turner’s arrest.

DC Superior Court Judge Marisa J. Demeo set the trial to continue on Sept 29.

Judge Changes Supervision So Sex Assault Defendant Can Go to High School

DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt modified the hours of a sexual assault defendant’s supervision program, allowing him to continue to attend high school.

On Aug. 1, Metropolitan Police Department officers responded to a call and found the defendant, 18, and the complainant in a parking lot on the 1500 block of Rhode Island Avenue NW. The complainant was barely conscious.

When officers viewed surveillance footage that showed the defendant moving the complaint behind a vehicle and bending her over, according to court documents.

A witness told police that the defendant looked as if he was having sex with the complainant.

Officers detained the defendant and called the Sexual Assault Unit, who arrested the defendant. Officers found several of items of the complainant’s property on the defendant, including a multicolored clutch and rings, the documents stated.

The defendant was charged the next day with fourth-degree sex abuse and robbery.

At the Thursday hearing, defense attorney Joseph Yarbough requested that the defendant be allowed to go to school and finish his high school diploma.

The prosecutor opposed the motion, saying it had not been long enough to be sure the defendant would be safe re-entering the community.

However, Judge Brandt granted the motion, permitting the defendant to leave his house between 7 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. on the weekdays. The defendant is also permitted to leave between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekends.

“This is your one and only chance,” Judge Brandt told the defendant, saying if he broke his curfew once she would have him detained at the DC Jail.

“Be conscious of the fact that even if it’s mom or dad, it’s the bus, whatever it is, if you’re not home at 5:30, you’re the only one that’ll be put in orange,” Judge Brandt said.

The parties are scheduled to reconvene on Oct. 31 for a felony status conference.

Judge Releases Homicide Defendant from Jail

A homicide defendant was released after less than a month in the DC Jail during a Sept. 29 preliminary hearing.

On Sept. 2, 39-year-old Archie Moore was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, driving under the influence, and reckless driving after a high-speed crash on the 200 block of 51st Street, SE, which resulted in the death of 60-year-old Rebecca Manley. When hospitalized after the crash, Moore told staff he “did PCP and marijuana.” Officers found marijuana in his car, according to court records.

When Moore’s case was arraigned on Sept. 3, the prosecutor requested he be held in the DC Jail due to the danger presented to the community. DC Superior Court Judge Jason Park held Moore.

However, at the Thursday hearing, the preliminary hearing in the case, the prosecutor announced that she was no longer pursuing the hold.

Defense attorney Roderick Thompson asked DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt to grant Moore release on his personal promise to return to court.

Judge Brandt granted the motion and filed an order for Moore to be released from the DC Jail immediately.

The parties are scheduled to reconvene for a status hearing on Oct. 21.

Judge Reschedules Non-fatal Shooting Defendant’s Hearing

DC Superior Judge Jason Park rescheduled a non-fatal shooting defendant’s felony hearing date to October.

The 38-year-old defendant is charged with second-degree burglary, unlawful discharge of a firearm, possession with the intent to distribute – marijuana, carrying a pistol without a license, possession of unregistered ammunition, possession of an unregistered firearm and destruction of property for allegedly shooting at Metropolitan Police Department officers in the area of Georgia Avenue and Kennedy Street, NW on Sept. 7.

According to court documents, officers found a man that matched the description of the suspect around the same location.

When officers approached the individual, he began to run, documents state. They found him in an alleyway where the individual allegedly fired in an officer’s direction when confronted.

After the defendant left the alleyway, he found his way into a home through the back rear door. Once he entered the home, there were sounds of two more shots and glass breaking inside the home.

The defendant proceeded to the roof of the home where he attempted to get rid of the gun by throwing it onto the street nearby.

The weapon was recovered by an officer who also happened to be on the scene.

After the defendant was apprehended, he was transferred to Washington Hospital Center for a medical evaluation.

The defendant is being held without bail.

The defendant’s next felony hearing is scheduled for Oct. 11.

Document: Police Charge Suspect in 51st Street Shooting

On Sept. 28, detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department charged 23-year-old Ky’Lee Palmer and charged him with first-degree murder while armed.

According to a press release, Palmer allegedly shot 60-year-old Barron Goodwin on Feb. 12, 2020, on the 800 block of 51st Street, SE.

Document: Police Seek to Identify Sex Abuse Suspect

The Metropolitan Police Department is requesting the public’s assistance to identify a sexual assault suspect.

According to a press release, the suspect allegedly engaged in unwanted sexual contact with victims on the 1000 block of 17th Street, NW and the 1100 block of New Hampshire Avenue, NW on Sept. 26.

The suspect is described as a white or Hispanic male, approximately 30-40 years old with a heavy build and slicked back hair.

Expert Witness Confirms Blood Stain in Victim’s Apartment was Hers

On Sept. 28, one of the prosecution’s expert witnesses testified about DNA test results that confirmed a blood stain found in the victim’s apartment was hers.

Darnell Sterling, 57, was arrested and charged with the second-degree murder of Olga Ooro, his 34-year-old girlfriend. According to court documents, Sterling was the last person reported to have seen Ooro before her disappearance on July 17, 2020. Sterling is accused of wrapping the victim’s body in bed sheets and putting her in the backseat of his Volkswagen Passat.

A DNA Technician testified that results from the blood stain matched the victim’s DNA.

The technician said he took samples of Ooro’s parents DNA to compare it.

During the investigation, a concierge at Ooro’s apartment building on the 300 block of Massachusetts Avenue, NW, testified to overhearing Sterling’s conversation with an unidentified male on July 18, 2020.

“Mr. Sterling mentioned to him he was at the beach with his girl,” the concierge said.

The witness continued, saying Sterling came over to the front desk and told her, “I left that bitch at the hotel because she didn’t want to go to the beach with me”.

During cross examination, defense attorney Howard McEachern pointed out that the witness never told the grand jury in January 2021 about that statement.

A Forensic Scientist with the Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS) took photographs throughout the victim’s apartment including a photo of the victim’s mattress without sheets.

He testified that there didn’t appear to be any signs of struggle. The prosecution showed a photograph the witness took of the apartment. The prosecutor zoomed in on a dot that, at the time, DFS hadn’t noticed.

The next Forensic Scientist from DFS to testify had said she noticed a spot of suspected blood in the hallway about 6ft 3 inches high on the wall.

She said used Hemastix, a presumptive test that detects the presence of blood, to determine if the spot was blood spatter. The Hemastix turned green, indicating a positive sign for blood.

Referring to the small amount of blood, McEachern asked the witness “Is that amount of blood loss consistent with someone dying?” He also pointed out that there wasn’t any other blood found in the rest of the apartment.

DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan scheduled the trial to resume on Sept. 29.

Judge Orders Prosecutor to Turn Over Names of Potential Eyewitnesses

The prosecutor admitted she did not interview several potential eyewitnesses to a homicide during a Sept. 29 status hearing. DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt ordered that she give the names of those witnesses to the defense.

On April 19, 2019, Demetrius Void, 35, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder while armed in connection with the shooting death of 24-year-old Anthony Lawson on Sept. 25, 2018, on the 6200 block of Eastern Avenue NE. Lawson and Void were allegedly having a dispute over a gold Chevy Impala that belonged to Void’s mother, according to court records.

In the hearing on Thursday, defense attorneys Matthew Davies and Will Alley requested that the prosecutor turn over the names and contact information of all her witnesses. Several of these witnesses were at the gas station where the confrontation began, which was within sight of a bus stop where the shooting occurred.

“I’m not going to order the government to disclose its witnesses 11 months in advance of the trial,” Judge Brandt said. “You’ve got sufficient disclosure right now to start your defense.”

Alley noted that some of the testimony that had already been disclosed to the defense was contradictory, and that one witness was unable to identify Void in a photo array. The prosecutor, he argued, had the duty to disclose any other inconsistencies found during her investigation, pursuant to the Brady rule.

“All the inconsistencies have been turned over,” the prosecutor said. The prosecution had not interviewed everyone on the scene, the prosecutor admitted.

When Judge Brandt asked why the prosecution hadn’t sought to hear from everyone in the vicinity, the prosecutor said she discounted several individuals who she deemed to not have a clear vantage point of the shooting, and one individual who was “heavily intoxicated.”

That individual had been sitting at the bus stop, only feet away from the location of the shooting, when it occurred, the prosecutor said. Though she did not interview that witness, the prosecution has a name for him, which could either be his first name or an alias.

“I’m going to order that you turn over that name, as best you got it,” Judge Brandt told the prosecutor. “Let the defense go on a hunt [for him].”

On the day of the shooting in 2018, court records show that Void was seen by multiple witnesses approaching his mother at the gas station lot and asking for the keys to her gold Chevy Impala. Void’s mother was with Lawson at the lot, telling Metropolitan Police Department officers later that Lawson was her dealer for crack cocaine.

She refused to give Void the keys, and Lawson told Void “something to the effect of she ain’t giving you shit,” a witness told officers, according to court records.

Void then pulled a gun on his mother, beat her, and took the Impala. He drove off but returned to the scene some time later, standing with another man at the nearby bus stop. When Lawson left the gas station lot and headed in the direction of the bus stop, Void shot him, court records show.

The warrant issued for Void’s arrest charged him only with first-degree murder while armed. On Jan. 14, 2020, Void was indicted for six additional charges, including armed carjacking and three counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence on top of the murder charge.

As the Thursday hearing concluded, Davies requested information about the people at the gas station who weren’t pursued by the prosecutor, who may or may not have had a clear line of sight.

“The Court of Appeals would probably have something to say about the prosecution having witnesses, potential eyewitnesses, and failing, for whatever reason it was, to interview them,” Judge Brandt said in her ruling.

The parties are scheduled to reconvene on Oct. 14 for a status hearing.

Docuement: Police ID Victim in Second Street Stabbing

The Metropolitan Police Department identified a victim in a stabbing that occurred on the 5100 block of 2nd Street, NW.

According to a press release, officers found 73-year-old Gloria Williams in an apartment Sept. 25 suffering from trauma during a welfare check. Williams died on the scene.

The Chief Medical Examiner for the District of Columbia said her death was caused by sharp force injuries.

Document: Suspects Sought in a Homicide

Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a homicide that occurred on Sept. 24, on the 4500 block of Benning Road, SE.

At approximately 5:40 p.m., officers located two adult male victims suffering from apparent gunshot wounds.

One of the men, 26-year-old Antonio Taylor was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

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