Sexual Assault Defendant Arraigned, Scheduled for Trial

A 31-year-old defendant was arraigned on first-degree burglary and second-degree sex abuse charges.

According to court documents, the defendant allegedly entered the victim’s home with the intent to commit a sexual assault. The incident occurred around the 900 block of Florida Avenue, NW, in the early morning of January 23.

He was indicted on first-degree burglary and second-degree sex abuse charges during his most recent hearing on June 1. Judge Maribeth Raffinan presided over the arraignment.

Due to receiving an indictment, Judge Raffinan scheduled a trial for August 30. The prosecutor expects their case to last a week while the defendant’s defense attorneys expect their portion to last one day.

The next court date is scheduled for July 14 to discuss pending DNA evidence.

Defendant Indicted in Homicide Case

A defendant who is charged in two separate homicide cases was indicted on multiple charges in his first case.

Antoine Turner, 28, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder while armed in connection with the shootings of Demeitri Anderson. On Nov. 29, 2020, Anderson, 23, was shot 13 times on the 4500 block of Benning Road, SE.

Turner is also charged in a second homicide that occurred less than a month later. On Nov. 3, 2020, Demetrius Benson, 24, was shot in the armpit on the 4500 block of Dix Street, NE.

Turner was arraigned on one count of first-degree murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction and carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business during the June 1 hearing.

The prosecution and defense have not discussed a plea deal since the last hearing but evidentiary information has been provided to Turner’s defense counsel. The prosecutor mentioned a plethora of surveillance videos from the incident citing as the reason to place the status hearing around six weeks out to give the defense a reasonable amount of time to review the evidence.

The arrangement ended with a status hearing being scheduled for July 21.

Document: Arrest Made in May 10 Homicide

The Metropolitan Police Department has made an arrest in relation to a May 10 homicide.

At approximately 9:30 a.m. officers arrived to the 2600 block of Stanton Road, SE, due to a report of a shooting. Upon arrival, officers located 38-year-old James Curtis with gunshot wounds and transported him to a local hospital. He later succumbed to his injuries, according to the press release.

On May 30, officers arrested 19-year-old Ethan Cunningham and charged him with first-degree murder while armed, according to the press release.

Man Pleads Guilty to 2 Sexual Assaults Committed Against Strangers

A defendant pleaded guilty to two separate sexual assaults committed against strangers.

On May 26, Kenneth Pollard pleaded guilty to third-degree sexual abuse and second-degree burglary in one case and misdemeanor sex abuse in another.

The misdemeanor sex abuse case stems from an incident on Feb. 14, 2020, in which Pollard, 54, approached a woman at a bus stop and groped her.

On Aug. 31, 2021, Pollard “assaulted a female stranger and asked her to have his baby” while she was waiting at a bus stop in Lower Central Northeast, according to the prosecution. He proceeded to put her in a chokehold and continued to repeat that he wanted her to “have his baby.” The victim was able to flee into a nearby cafe but Pollard was able to assault her again, dragging her through the building.

“While the defendant was dragging the complaint he reached into her shirt, fondling her breasts,” the prosecutor said. He dragged her outside, and the assault continued until bystanders were able to intervene.

The entire assault was captured on surveillance video. Pollard told the court during his sentencing that at the time of the assault, he was on PCP. He told officers on the scene that he assaulted someone but does not remember specifics.

“He has seen the video and is able to acknowledge what happened,” defense attorney Leo Alley said during the proceedings.

Pollard is scheduled to be sentenced on July 20.

Document: Teenager Fatally Shot in Southeast, DC

Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating the fatal shooting of a teenage victim.

At approximately 11:24 a.m. on May 26, officers responded to the 2200 block of Savannah Terrace, SE, for the report of a shooting, according to a press release. There, they found 16-year-old Justin Johnson suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Document: 16 Year Old Arrested, Charged With Murder

A 16-year-old male suspect was arrested and charged with first-degree murder while armed in reference to a 2021 homicide.

At approximately 11:34 a.m. on May 13, 2021, Metropolitan Police Department officers responded to the 200 block of 37^th Place, SE, due to reports of a shooting, according to a press release. There, they found four men suffering from gunshot wounds.

One of the victims, 31-year-old Anwar Christian, succumbed to his injuries on June 29, 2021.

The suspect was arrested on May 26.

Document: Homicide in Northwest, DC

Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a fatal shooting in Northwest, DC.

At approximately 10:01 p.m. on May 24, officers responded to the 1200 block of North Capitol Street, NW, for the report of a shooting, according to a press release. They did not find a shooting victim but learned that a man walked into a local hospital suffering from a gunshot wound.

The victim, 20-year-old Jahmeze Williams, succumbed to his injuries.

Document: Homicide at Thomas Circle and Massachusetts Avenue

Metropolitan Police Department detectives are investigating a fatal shooting at Thomas Circle and Massachusetts Avenue, NW.

At approximately 9:47 a.m. on May 23, officers heard a gunshot, according to a press release. A witness directed officers to the location, where they found 32-year-old Emmanuel Lys suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Witnesses Recount Day of 81-Year-Old Man’s Attack During Murder Trial

Bobby Poole was 81 years old when he became the victim of a deadly attack on a spring day in 2020. During the third day of trial proceedings for the man charged in his death, five witnesses pieced that day together.

Surveillance footage from 11:30 a.m. on March 29, 2020, shows Poole walking into a 7-Eleven on the 900 block of Division Avenue, NE. A witness who knew one of Poole’s children said he saw Poole almost every morning. The next time he saw Poole that day, “he was laying on the ground,” the witness said during the May 24 trial.

Poole was found bleeding from the head by the iron gate of a condominium complex next to the 7-Eleven. Tyrone Williams is accused of assaulting Poole with another unknown individual while trying to rob him.

Poole was taken to a local hospital and was sent home with hospice care on May 5 but died the following day, more than a month after the attack. That July, a doctor deemed Poole’s primary cause of death to be complications of a subdural hemorrhage due to blunt force trauma to the head, according to court documents.

“You were always looking for two people, is that correct,” Williams’ defense attorney, Steven Logerfo, asked the day’s first witness, a Metropolitan Police Department detective.

“Yes,” the detective responded.

Williams, 52, was arrested and charged with assault with intent to commit robbery the same day as the attack. He is now on trial for felony murder and attempted robbery. The detective worked on the case until Poole died and the MPD’s homicide branch took over. During his direct examination, a prosecutor played footage of the detective asking Williams what happened after he and the other individual turned a corner near the 7-Eleven.

“You told Williams that everything was on video before you read his Miranda Rights, is that correct,” Logerfo asked.

The detective agreed.

Williams insisted during the interview that he was alone, despite surveillance footage showing him with someone else. He said he walked to Lowest Price, a nearby gas station and convenience store on Sheriff Road in Capitol Heights, Md., after leaving the 7-Eleven. The detective was not able to access any surveillance footage from Lowest Price. The first time he visited the store, the manager was not there. By the time he visited for a second time, the footage had been overridden.

The 7-Eleven where Poole and Williams could be seen is no longer open for business as of the May 24 trial day. During direct examination, a prosecutor walked through surveillance footage from the store with the detective.

When the prosecutor paused the footage at 11:30 a.m., Poole could be seen towards the back of the store’s parking lot while Williams was right outside the door. Poole approaches the store and walks in.

Williams could be seen walking into the 7-Eleven at about 11:32 a.m. and leaving the store less than 10 minutes later.

Outdoor surveillance footage of the side of the store shows Poole walking along a sidewalk towards the condominium, where he’d eventually be found bleeding from his head. Williams and the other individual walk behind him.

After Poole was attacked, the witness who said he saw Poole almost every day went with the victim’s son to search for the assailants, although he did not see the incident himself. Upon returning to the 7-Eleven, the witness said he saw Williams and alerted the police. He said he saw Williams there almost every day and went on to pick him out of a photo lineup.

Officers stopped Williams outside the 7-Eleven. An MPD officer testified that bystanders were trying to fight him.

An MPD sergeant retrieved Williams’ bag for him before he was led into a police car. During her testimony, the sergeant affirmed that nothing that happened outside the 7-Eleven influenced the decision to arrest him.

In total, the day’s proceedings featured testimony from three law enforcement witnesses and two civilian witnesses. DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo instructed jurors to return to court on May 25 to continue with the trial.

Man Sentenced for Sexually Assaulting Woman After Breaking Into Her Home

A man was sentenced for sexually assaulting a woman after breaking into her Carver-Langston neighborhood apartment.

Datwain Green was initially charged with first-degree sex abuse, assault with intent to commit first-degree sex abuse and kidnapping. On March 22, he pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree sexual abuse.

Green took an Alford Plea– a plea in which a defendant does not admit to committing a criminal act but accepts that there is enough evidence to convict them.

During the March 24 sentencing hearing, defense attorney Matthew Hertz said Green has a history of mental health issues and at the time of the assault, was experiencing a mental health crisis. His health has since improved.

“He doesn’t seem to be someone who has violence in his blood, in his bones,” Hertz said. “His behavior is going to change if he takes care of himself.”

“Mr. Green, I wish that I could be outraged or whatever else comes to mind, but, there’s something about your history that makes it understandable that there is some mitigation here in this tragedy,” DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt said. “I have to admit you are a mystery to me to a certain extent.”

Green’s Static-99 score, an evaluation instrument used to assess a person’s probability of reoffending in sexual abuse cases, judged him to have a medium to high risk of reoffending. Attorneys debated the merits of this score because Green only has one prior violent offense.

“I hope the victim can forgive me for what I’ve done,” Green said, explaining that he had never done anything like this before.

Green was in a relationship with the victim’s friend, who was temporarily living with the victim at the time of the assault. She left her door unlocked so that the friend could enter her apartment while she was gone. This is believed to be how Green was able to enter the home while the victim was away.

“Not only mom did you lose on that day your piece of mind and security, but you lost your best friend,” Judge Brandt told the victim, who was in the audience and submitted a written victim impact statement but chose not to speak.

Green sexually assaulted the victim soon after she returned home. She yelled to the voice assistant on her iPhone, Siri, to call 911. This call was recorded and used as evidence in the case.

“Allegedly, your best friend has taken it upon herself to shame you on social media, that is wrong, wrong wrong, to you (the victim),” Judge Brandt said. ”I want you to hear me and hear me loudly. You did nothing wrong, you did not bring this upon yourself. You are nothing more than a victim, a brave victim because I listened to that 911 call and it made me sick to my stomach. It also made me want to stand up and applaud you.”

Officers removed Green from the victim when they arrived. Hertz said seeing the body-worn camera footage made Green become emotional.

“If only the public could see law enforcement at its best and most courageous,” Judge Brandt said.

Green was sentenced to three years in prison with one of those years suspended. He was sentenced on the lower end of the DC code sentencing guidelines since he only has one prior offense.

Judge Brandt said in her experience the longer someone stays on probation, the more likely they are to fail. She sentenced him to serve three years of probation after his prison sentence and register as a sex offender for the remainder of his lifetime.

There Were 63 Homicides Between January 1 and May 20

D.C. Witness mapped all 63 homicides that occurred between January 1 and May 20, 2022.

Judge Releases Domestic Violence Defendant from Home Confinement

A domestic violence defendant accused of trying to kill his now-former significant other was released from home confinement with GPS monitoring and a curfew.

The defendant was charged with assault with intent to kill while armed in February 2020. During his most recent hearing on May 19, a prosecutor told DC Superior Court Judge Robert Okun an indictment was coming soon, and charges were already before a grand jury.

A judge ordered the defendant held at DC Jail during his initial hearing on Feb. 6, 2020. Later that month, he was released to a halfway house until March 23, 2020, when he was released into home confinement under the High Intensity Supervision Program.

On Feb. 28, 2021, the court relaxed the defendant’s release conditions so he could leave his home for work. Since then, he has been working two jobs while wearing a GPS monitor.

Defense attorney Ronald Resetarits asked Judge Okun to transfer his client from HISP into standard pretrial release with a curfew. Resetarits cited the defendant’s long history of compliance with his release conditions. He said the defendant remained employed during his time on HISP without any violations.

An attorney for the victim was present during the hearing and said the victim was still fearful of the defendant’s alleged violent behavior. They asked that he remain in home confinement.

Judge Okun said the defendant had been largely compliant with the stay away, no-contact order for the past two years. He noted one violation of the home confinement order during which the defendant stayed overnight at a new girlfriend’s home.

Judge Okun released the defendant from home confinement and instituted a curfew requirement that befitted the defendant’s two job schedules, which includes night shifts.

The defendant is scheduled to return to court for a felony status conference on Oct. 24.

Judge Releases Domestic Violence Defendant from Home Confinement

A domestic violence defendant accused of trying to kill his now-former significant other was released from home confinement with GPS monitoring and a curfew.

The defendant was charged with assault with intent to kill while armed in February 2020. During his most recent hearing on May 19, a prosecutor told DC Superior Court Judge Robert Okun an indictment was coming soon, and charges were already before a grand jury.

A judge ordered the defendant held at DC Jail during his initial hearing on Feb. 6, 2020. Later that month, he was released to a halfway house until March 23, 2020, when he was released into home confinement under the High Intensity Supervision Program.

On Feb. 28, 2021, the court relaxed the defendant’s release conditions so he could leave his home for work. Since then, he has been working two jobs while wearing a GPS monitor.

Defense attorney Ronald Resetarits asked Judge Okun to transfer his client from HISP into standard pretrial release with a curfew. Resetarits cited the defendant’s long history of compliance with his release conditions. He said the defendant remained employed during his time on HISP without any violations.

An attorney for the victim was present during the hearing and said the victim was still fearful of the defendant’s alleged violent behavior. They asked that he remain in home confinement.

Judge Okun said the defendant had been largely compliant with the stay away, no-contact order for the past two years. He noted one violation of the home confinement order during which the defendant stayed overnight at a new girlfriend’s home.

Judge Okun released the defendant from home confinement and instituted a curfew requirement that that worked with the defendant’s two job schedules, which includes night shifts.

The defendant is scheduled to return to court for a felony status conference on Oct. 24.

2022 Sexual Abuse Defendant Ages Analyzed

D.C. Witness analyzed the ages of all sexual abuse defendants at the time of their arrests in 2022 cases. This data shows no correlation between age and case, with the youngest defendant being 18 years old and the oldest defendant being 70 years old.

Homicide Arrests by Year

In 2020, more people were arrested in reference to Washington homicides than in the two years prior, according to D.C. Witness data.

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