Plea Deal Drops Homicide Charge for One of the Parents Charged After Toddler’s Death

Two parents who initially faced murder charges in the death of their two-year-old son entered guilty pleas. One of the defendants had their homicide charge dropped in its entirety.

On April 1, 2020, 31-year-old Ta’jeanna Eason called the police for her son, Gabriel Eason. Officers responded to the family home on the 900 Block of Division Avenue, NE, and found the child unconscious. Emergency personnel attempted to perform life-saving interventions. Despite their best efforts, Gabriel was pronounced dead on scene.

A medical examiner determined the child’s cause of death to be multiple blunt force injuries and ruled it a homicide. Approximately seven months after the incident, Eason and the child’s father, 28-year-old Antonio Turner, were arrested. Both were initially charged with felony murder and first-degree cruelty to children.

The two accepted a plea deal on Jan. 27. Turner pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, first-degree cruelty to children and assault with significant bodily injury. Eason pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree cruelty to children. Her homicide charge was dropped.

The two are scheduled to be sentenced on March 25.

Judge Finds Probable Cause in Case of East Capitol Street Stabbing

The lead detective in a homicide investigation testified during a hearing to determine if the case against the defendant has enough evidence to go to trial. Towards the conclusion of the proceedings, a DC Superior Court judge made a finding of probable cause.

The defendant, 51-year-old Warren Tyson, is charged with second-degree murder while armed for allegedly stabbing 21-year-old Michael Johnson to death on the 4900 block of East Capitol Street, SE, on Oct. 22, 2021.

The prosecution presented 13 different exhibits of evidence during the Jan. 25 hearing. This included security footage from a McDonald’s in Upper Central NE of a car identified as Tyson’s. He could be heard giving his name in the video. Next were two separate angles of a bus camera that passed the scene of the crime. In these videos, Tyson’s car can be seen as well as an individual fleeing from the crime scene.

In the car with Tyson were two of the witnesses. Each left a statement alleging they saw the defendant stab Johnson. The first witness also described trying to hold the defendant down as the “tussle” escalated.

The prosecutor then showed two separate 911 calls made at the scene of the crime. The first one involved two people yelling and what can be heard as threats. The prosecutor claimed this was Johnson was calling Tyson a pedophile and asking, “why you looking at little kids.”

The second call was from two witnesses. They described the aggressor and explained that they saw a man fleeing the scene. They went into detail about the man’s vehicle and the victim lying on the ground. One of the witnesses said the stab “must have been to the liver because there is so much blood.”

The prosecutor also showed pictures of two separate knives found in the defendant’s car. Various court documents were admitted into evidence as well. Finally, the defendant’s iCloud data was admitted. This includes over 130 GB of text messages, phone calls and pictures.

Tyson is being represented by defense attorneys David Akulian and Julie Swaney. Swaney took the lead during cross-examination, beginning her line of questioning by attempting to clarify issues with previous witness statements.

Two of those witnesses were in the car with Tyson before the stabbing. The reason for this was unclear. One said it was for a doctor’s appointment while the other said it was for a McDonald’s trip. The next two witnesses, the ones who had described the assailant, had discrepancies including the color of the car that they saw. They also said they saw a black-handled knife, when the photos submitted were of a green knife and a silver knife.

Swaney also brought up allegations that Tyson was texting a 15-year-old witness, asking for inappropriate pictures. They attempted to show that this may have been a self-defense situation or a heat of passion situation due to words exchanged between the victim and the defendant.

Still, Judge Marisa Demeo ultimately ruled that the case has enough evidence to go to trial.

The defense team then argued that their client should be released as he has shown consistent employment and has not had any police encounters in the last year. They also mentioned the defendant’s health conditions.

Tyson has previously been convicted of two sex offenses. His first conviction happened in North Carolina and led him to spend 14 years in prison. He then served six months in 2014.

Judge Demeo decided to keep Tyson held at DC Jail. He is scheduled to return to court on March 28 for a felony status conference.

Co-Defendants in Mass Shooting Case Reject Plea Offer

More than one year after a mass shooting that killed 22-year-old Edward Wade and wounded three others, the alleged perpetrators rejected a plea deal from the prosecution.

Terrance Oxner and Aaron Adgerson are charged in connection with the shooting, which occurred at a market in Fairlawn on Jan. 25, 2021.

Both defendants rejected a plea offer that has been open for a little more than a month. The deal would have required both defendants to plead guilty to lesser charges of second-degree murder while armed and conspiracy to murder. As of Dec. 13, Adgerson, 18, was leaning towards rejecting the plea and Oxner, 22, had yet to make a formal decision. Both defendants had to accept the plea in order for it to go through.

Oxner’s defense attorney, Madalyn Harvey, said she had hoped to negotiate further with the prosecutor and was open to a pretrial resolution to the case. She said they refused, so she is looking ahead to the trial.

Adgerson’s defense attorney, Michael Madden, then made an oral request for Adgerson’s release from the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services. The prosecutor is only accusing Adgerson of being a lookout while Oxner committed the murder, which Madden said is not a substantial enough reason to hold him.

Agerson is also charged with escape for allegedly attempting to leave the Psychiatric Institute of Washington in Northwest, DC, following his arrest. Madden said this escape was a mistake Adgerson made due to him still being under the effects of narcotics he was taking pre-arrest. He did not want this issue to affect the possibility of Adgerson being released to stay with his mother. Madden says he is in regular contact with Agerson’s mother and she is heavily involved in his case.

DC Superior Court Judge Robert Okun briefly asked the prosecutor if they plan to oppose this and they promptly said they do. He immediately denied the oral motion but said Madden can file a written one with more information if he wishes and it can be reviewed at a later date.

This case already is set to go to trial in November 2022 but there has yet to be an indictment. This has to be done before the trial commences, so parties set another hearing for April 22 to decide all motion and indictment dates.

DC Police Chief Updates Public on Jan. 27 Shootings in DC

Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert J. Contee III provided the public with updates on four shootings that happened on Jan. 27.

He gave an update on two different homicides- one of which occurred in a Days Inn hotel on the 400 block of Connecticut Avenue, NW. A 20-year-old woman, Dasha Cleary, was shot and killed during this incident.

“I want to extend my deepest condolences to the family of Dasha, this is a very very tragic incident that led to the unnecessary loss of a life,” he said. “Certainly, she deserved better.”

No arrest has been made in relation to this homicide.

Later that day, 17-year-old Kyle Richards was found unresponsive with a gunshot wound on the 4000 block of E Street, SW. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Contee said a 26-year-old who had been staying in the apartment because she was friends with the victim’s brother was charged with involuntary manslaughter. The shooting seems to investigators to have been an accident.

“We see tragedies when people are negligent when handling a firearm,“ he said.

He also gave updates on two nonfatal shootings that occurred that day, including one that followed an argument between two men in Columbia Heights.

“The Metropolitan Police Department has been working very hard in the area not just in building the community relations up there but improving community relations up there,” Chief Contee said, explaining that officers had just been nearby doing community outreach.

This shooting occurred just before 4:00 p.m. on the 1400 block of Irving Street, NW. Police soon responded and arrested 18-year-old Christopher Frank. He was charged with assault with intent to kill and carrying a pistol without a license.

The final update was for another nonfatal shooting. Police learned of this incident because a woman showed up to a local hospital with a gunshot wound. She was attempting to leave her residence in the 2100 block of North Capitol Street, NW, when two people shot towards the home, striking the woman.

Two additional people were seen leaving the residence, one of whom was armed. A 14-year-old, a 15-year-old and an 18-year-old were arrested in connection with the incident.

Defendant Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter for Marijuana Deal Gone Wrong

A defendant pleaded guilty to manslaughter more than two years after a marijuana deal ended in tragedy.

Knico Wheaton reached out to Tavon Cox over Instagram to purchase marijuana, according to the proffer of facts. The two met on Jan. 11, 2020, on the 700 block of 24th Street, NE. Wheaton asked to smell the marijuana, which Cox agreed to. The encounter ended with Wheaton reaching into his coat pocket, grabbing a firearm and shooting Cox. The 41-year-old succumbed to his injuries the next day.

Wheaton, 24, was arrested the following April. He went on to be indicted on charges of first-degree murder while armed, armed robbery, obstructing justice and possessing a firearm during a crime of violence.

During a Jan. 28 hearing, Wheaton accepted the prosecution’s offer to plead down to voluntary manslaughter while armed. In exchange for his guilty plea, the prosecution agreed to dismiss a separate case involving a gun charge.

DC Superior Court Judge Milton Lee scheduled Wheaton to be sentenced on March 22.

Defense in Murder Case Says They Aren’t Ready for March Trial

A murder defendant’s counsel asked a judge to postpone their client’s March trial due to the large volume of evidence they say they’ve received from the prosecution.

Malik Holston is accused of shooting 15-year-old Gerald Watson 17 times on Dec. 13, 2018, on the 2900 block of Knox Place, SE. Watson died soon after from his injuries. The 19-year-old defendant was arrested five days later and has remained held at the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services.

Holston was scheduled to go to trial on March 7 on charges of first-degree murder while armed, possessing a firearm during a crime of violence and carrying a pistol without a license. But defense attorneys Matthew Wilson and Sean Sukumar, who were appointed to represent Holston last August, said they wouldn’t be able to go over all the evidence and form a defense strategy by the trial date.

“It’s a 2018 case,” said Judge Rainey Brandt during the Jan. 28 hearing. “I’m ready to go and he’s detained.”

The prosecutors did not oppose the request after defense counsel confirmed they would not use the trial’s delay as a reason to request their client’s release from custody. Holston also confirmed to Judge Brandt that he was okay with postponing the trial.

After hearing from the parties, Judge Brandt rescheduled the trial to take place in October.

Parties are scheduled to reconvene for a trial readiness hearing on Feb. 1.

Parties Grapple with Trial Plans for Released Murder Defendant

Jordan Smith was charged with murder in November 2017 and held at DC Jail until a judge agreed to release him in 2019. Now, as numerous detained defendants wait to get trial dates, parties held off deciding when Smith would go before a jury when they met for a status hearing on Jan. 27.

The 34-year-old defendant is accused of shooting Yashika Green in the head on March 1, 2017. Officers found her that day in an apartment on the 3900 block of 2nd Street, SE, and took her to the hospital, where she was rushed into surgery. She succumbed to her injuries the following July 21, according to court documents. She was 42-years-old.

The prosecutor had reservations with defense attorney Mani Golzari’s suggestion to put off scheduling Smith’s trial due to how many jailed defendants are still waiting for theirs, noting how long the victim’s family have been waiting to see this case resolved.

“That is part of the consideration, certainly,” said DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan.

However, she pointed out how setting trial dates only to postpone them later on can come with disappointments of its own. The prosecutor suggested setting dates in 2023, but Golzari said he wasn’t available until April or May of that year because of his other trials.

Judge Raffinan scheduled parties to reconvene for a status hearing on March 25. In the meantime, Smith will remain in released in the High Intensity Supervision Program. He is compliant with his release conditions.

Given his compliance, Golzari asked Judge Raffinan to take his client off of GPS monitoring. The prosecution, who did not want Smith released from jail in the first place, asked for an opportunity to respond in writing. Judge Raffinan agreed and instructed Golzari to file a written motion.

Preliminary Hearing Rescheduled for Fatal Stabbing Case

A preliminary hearing for a murder case was rescheduled because a defendant was in quarantine at DC Jail.

Christian Monge is accused of killing 28-year-old Brittanie Clark on Aug. 31, 2021. Metropolitan Police Department officers found Clark in a residence on the 5000 block of First Street, NW, that afternoon suffering from apparent puncture wounds to the torso, according to court documents.

Monge, 25, was arrested nearly a month later and charged with second-degree murder while armed. He was supposed to have a preliminary hearing on Jan. 20 to determine if his case has enough evidence to go to trial. After learning of the defendant’s quarantine status, DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt scheduled the proceedings to happen on Feb. 1 instead.

Plea Deal Under Consideration in Domestic Violence Case

A domestic violence defendant received a plea offer.

The defendant is charged with assault with a dangerous weapon. The prosecution’s offer would allow him to plead down to attempted assault with a dangerous weapon. If accepted, parties would agree to recommend a six-month sentence.

The offer was extended late last week. During a Jan. 27 hearing, defense attorney Charles Haskell said he only got to speak briefly with his client, who is being held at DC Jail. DC Superior Court Judge Lynn Leibovitz continued the hearing to give Haskell time to go over the plea with the defendant.

The defendant has been detained since he picked up the case in November 2020. He was not brought to court for his previous hearing due to being in quarantine.

The next hearing is scheduled for Feb. 9.

Defendant Accused of Stabbing Girlfriend Arraigned on First-Degree Murder Charge

A DC Superior Court judge arraigned a domestic homicide defendant.

Ronald Miller is accused of stabbing his 28-year-old girlfriend, Tiffany Hardy, to death on Feb. 8, 2021. Hardy was found inside a residence on the 1600 block of E Street, NE, with multiple stab wounds to her neck and body, according to court documents. She was pronounced dead on scene.

Nearly one year after his arrest, the 42-year-old defendant was arraigned on the sole count of the indictment during a Jan. 26 hearing. He pleaded not guilty.

Miller is currently being held at DC Jail. Defense attorney Jason Tulley asked for his client to be moved to the Correctional Treatment Facility due to poor conditions at the jail. Judge Rainey Brandt agreed to make the recommendation.

Parties are slated to reconvene for a status hearing on Feb 16.

Judge Denies Murder Defendant’s Motion to Stop Possible DNA Consumption

A DC Superior Court judge denied a defense attorney’s motion to preclude the prosecution from consuming possible DNA evidence.

Khamari Perkins is charged with first-degree murder while armed and possessing a firearm during a crime of violence. The 21-year-old is accused of shooting Naseem Simpson,18, on March 15, 2020, on the 3000 block of 14th Street, NW.

The prosecution had already tested swabs of evidence and is now seeking to retest evidence with an independent lab instead of using the Department of Forensic Sciences. However, the defense was concerned that the prosecution could consume the rest of the evidence if they retest it.

Although Judge Maribeth Raffinan denied the defense’s motion during the Jan. 24 hearing, she did instruct the prosecution to preserve any remaining DNA extracted.

Parties are set to return to court on March 18 for a status hearing. They also have March 2 motions deadline with oppositions due by March 16.

Perkins’ trial is scheduled to take place in September. The prosecution anticipates needing three to five days to present their case while the defense anticipates needing one to two days.

Data Shows More Homicides Occurred in 2021 than Previous Years

The year 2021 saw more homicides than any year since 2003. While the number rose, the statistics behind them largely stayed the same.

There were 227 homicides in 2021, which is approximately 34 homicides per 100,000 people. While this number is larger than the previous year, many of the statistics surrounding it remained the same.

Arrests

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD)'s clearance rate is slightly lower than any year since 2015. This rate is defined by any homicide where an arrest was made and was just barely over 42% in 2021. While the number seems lower than average, it is only slightly lower than previous years.

Causes

The cause of homicides remained similar to previous years, but one reasoning saw an increase in stabbings. Approximately 13 percent of homicides were due to fatal stabbings in 2021, a number that had not yet been seen since 2018. The youngest victim was 15-year-old Kemon Payne, who was killed on Aug. 18, 2021.

According to a Metropolitan Police Department press release, at about 3:11 p.m. on Aug. 18, members of a School Security Division were assisting with Safe Passage, a program meant to promote safe transportation for students in DC, when they were informed of an altercation taking place on the 1400 block of Brentwood Parkway, NE.

A 15-year-old was arrested that same day and charged with second-degree murder while armed.

Other causes including fatal shootings and trauma did not see a significant change.

Age

The average age of homicide victims in the last six years has been 32. The outliers have also stayed the same with homicides affecting age groups across the board.

Six-year-old Nyiah Courtney was shot and killed on July 17, 2021. Her homicide was ruled a mass shooting because at least three others, including her father, were hit by gunfire.

Marktwan Hargraves was arrested in relation to the mass shooting and charged with second-degree murder while armed. Judge Marisa Demeo found substantial probable cause that if Hargraves goes to trial, he would be found guilty of the murder.

Courtney is not the only child to be murdered in DC. At least 102 people who were18 years old or younger were murdered since 2015, including 18 youth homicides in 2021- or 7.93 percent of the total homicides.

The interactive map below shows homicides in 2021.

Parties Prepare to Retry Murder Case

Parties in a murder case are preparing to go to trial for a second time after the defendant’s convictions were reversed due to issues with the exclusion of Black jurors.

Sixteen of the 48 potential jurors were Black the first time Mark Beasley went to trial for his alleged role in a 2015 shooting that killed 39-year-old Darryn Conte and injured another, according to court documents. Attorneys may use a limited number of peremptory challenges to exclude potential jurors without giving a reason but they must not use them for purposeful discrimination on the basis of race or gender. The prosecution in Beasley’s case used eight of their 10 preemptory challenges to strike Black jurors. Two of those jurors were also struck by the defense.

Prosecutors used one peremptory challenge to strike a Latino juror as well, according to court documents.

The selected jurors convicted Beasley of first-degree murder while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed, possessing a firearm during a crime of violence and unlawful possession of a firearm. Judge José M. López, who presided over the trial, sentenced him to 40 years in prison.

Beasley won his appeal in 2019.

“Mr. Beasley appeals his subsequent convictions, arguing that the trial court erred in determining that he failed to make out a prima facie case of discriminatory intent based on the government’s use of peremptory strikes,” Associate Judge Corrine Beckwith wrote in the opinion. “We agree and therefore reverse Mr. Beasley’s convictions.”

On Jan. 25, parties met to prepare for the new trial, which is set to begin in December. Beasley remains represented by attorneys Pierce Suen and Anthony Matthews. The defense anticipates calling two witnesses at most and is still deciding if they would like to call an expert witness. Notice of expert witnesses is due July 11.

While the prosecutor could not remember exactly how many witnesses they plan to call, she estimated it would be around 12 to 16 people with about two expert witnesses.

The shooting at the center of this trial took place on April 26, 2015, after an alleged argument outside a nightclub in Takoma, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Beasley is accused of firing at a vehicle containing Conte and the surviving victim as Conte’s brother looked on.

Parties are scheduled to reconvene for another trial readiness hearing on Oct. 14.

Mother Charged with 11-Month-Old’s Death Accepts Plea Deal

A mother accepted a plea deal more than a year after she was arrested for the death of her infant child.

Makenzie Anderson was approximately two weeks shy of her first birthday when she died. At the time, her mother, Tyra Anderson, was staying with Makenzie and her three other children in a hotel on the 1600 block of New York Avenue, NE. Makenzie was last seen in surveillance footage on Feb. 1, 2020.

The prosecutor said that on the afternoon of Feb. 6, 2020, Metropolitan Police Department officers were dispatched to the Children’s National Medical Center because the infant was displaying signs of physical abuse.

Anderson, 28, told medical personnel as well as the officers on the scene that the victim fell off of the bed and began having shaking episodes, during which Anderson proceeded to pick her up and shake her. Anderson claimed that she found the infant cold to the touch the following morning, Feb. 6, which is when she took her to the hospital.

The following December, Anderson was arrested and charged with first-degree cruelty to children and felony murder. On Jan. 26, she pleaded down to voluntary manslaughter as part of an agreement with the prosecution.

DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt accepted the plea and scheduled Anderson to be sentenced on March 31.

Judge Sets 2023 Trial Dates for Domestic Homicide Case

A judge scheduled a murder defendant to go to trial in May 2023. Parties estimate it will last three weeks.

On April 15, 2020, 28-year-old Shantal Hill was found on the 1200 block of North Capitol Street, NW, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Before she succumbed to her injuries at a local hospital, a Metropolitan Police Department officer asked her who shot her. She responded with the name of her ex-boyfriend, Carson Posey, according to court documents.

Posey, 21, is currently charged with first-degree murder while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.

DC Superior Court Judge Julie Becker, the judge previously assigned to this case, said the defense was okay with having a pair of boots being used as evidence sent to a forensic lab to be tested for DNA as long as there was scientific proof that there was readable DNA on them before the prosecution tests them.

Video surveillance reportedly shows the defendant and his girlfriend minutes before the shooting occurred, wearing boots that are similar in appearance to ones he owns.

Both parties agreed to set a March 11 deadline for all discovery evidence to be in.

Judge Rainey Brandt scheduled the next hearing for April 8.

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