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Judge Continues Hearing for Homicide Case

A DC Superior Court judge continued a May 10 hearing to allow time for the defense to review discovery evidence.

Nathan Hunter, 39, is charged with second-degree murder while armed in the shooting of 44-year-old Ronald McKnight on April 18 on the 1600 block of 7th Street, NW. Hunter was arrested that same day.

Defense attorney Frances D’Antuono also asked Judge Jonathan Pittman to extend their subpoena power until the next hearing, which he agreed to do. 

The next hearing is scheduled for June 17.

Judge Continues Two Murder Cases Awaiting Indictment

On May 10, a DC Superior Court judge continued two 2020 murder cases that are currently pending indictments.

Khamari Perkins, 20, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in the death of 18-year-old Naseem Simpson, who was shot March 15, 2020, on the 3000 block of 14th Street, NW. 

Judge Judith Smith continued his case to Aug. 30 for another scheduling hearing and to allow the prosecution to offer a plea deal.

Ch’juan Robinson, 23, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in the shooting of Louis Eugene Kingsbury, 34, on April 30, 2020, on the 200 block of New York Avenue, NW.

Judge Smith also continued his case to Oct. 4 for another scheduling hearing.

Document: Woman Killed in Apparent Stabbing

Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives are investigating a homicide that happened during the early hours of May 10.

At around 2:08 a.m., officers responded to the 2600 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, SE for the report of an unconscious person, according to a press release.

There, they found 47-year-old Georgette Banks in a residential building suffering from an apparent stab wound. She was pronounced dead on the scene.

My Spring Internship at D.C. Witness

As my internship is coming to an end I realize that I have learned a lot about the court system, become a better writer and feel more prepared to potentially be a witness in court if my future job required it of me. 

I also realized how long and drawn out court cases are and very inefficient. This was all made worse due to the pandemic and limited access to courtrooms. It is disheartening to see defendants held in jail for years before they have had a trial. Seems counterintuitive to the right to a speedy trial. 

Overall the court cases and the data retrieval I worked on for firearms and number of homicides was very interesting and informative. Learning the legal lingo, steps involved in a criminal process from the presentments, preliminary hearings and various status hearings, submitting a guilty plea and sentencing and just generally how the various parties interact with each other. Attending court was very enlightening and I did not realize the plethora of information available to the public regarding criminal proceedings.

Regarding the more administrative aspects of the internship, I had some difficulty with getting my assignments either at all or on time. There were a few mishaps where I wasn’t included on the assignment emails or I was not given an assignment at all. In these instances I reached out to the scheduler to correct the error.  At times this did create frustration on my part because it made planning my day difficult. But beyond these few issues I felt very supported by the team and able to communicate freely. Krystin Roehl, specifically was very professional, succinct and clear with her instructions and when I made errors she walked me through the issues and I learned from her feedback.

I would definitely recommend this internship to other people interested in the court system, journalism and/or policy change. 

Alaina Provenza was a D.C. Witness intern in the Spring of 2021.

Document: Homicide in Southeast, DC

Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives are investigating a homicide that happened on May 8.

At around 5:45 p.m., officers responded to the 400 block of 8th Street, SE for the report of a stabbing. There, they found 29-year-old Keith Fry with an apparent stab wound. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

Crime Alerts: May 9-10

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) sent out six crime alerts between 9:00 p.m. on May 9 and 9:00 a.m. on May 10.

The most recent alert was sent at 2:49 a.m. for a shooting investigation on the 2600 block of Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE. Police do not have a description of the suspect(s).

An alert was sent at 2:20 a.m. on the 2700 block of Devonshire Place, NW. Police are looking for three suspects. Suspect one is a Black male, 5’11” in height, 140 pounds, wearing a red and white hoodie. Suspect two is 5’4″ in height, 120-140 pounds. Suspect three is a Black male who was last seen in the 3000 block of Connecticut Avenue, NW.

Another alert for a robbery was sent at 2:03 a.m. at the intersection of Mt. Pleasant and Park Roads, NW. Police are looking for three Black males. The first suspect is 5’11” with a grey shirt. The second has a dark complexion. The third was seen in a dark colored van.

An alert was sent at 12:02 a.m. for a shooting investigation on the 2600 block of 18th Street, SE. Police are looking for an older model Ford Escape with no lights.

Another alert for a shooting investigation was sent at 9:41 p.m. on the 2100 block of Mississippi Avenue, SE. Police are looking for a Black male with a thin build, wearing a red jacket.

The final alert was sent at 9:24 p.m. for another shooting investigation on the 1300 block of Alabama Avenue, SE. Police are looking for a Black male, 6’0″ in height, wearing a red hoodie and black pants. They are also looking for a Black male, 5’7″ in height, wearing a black jacket and light blue jeans. Both suspects were wearing masks and armed with handguns.

Judge Holds Sex Abuse Defendant During Initial Hearings

During initial hearings on May 7, a DC Superior Court judge held a sexual abuse defendant.

In total, there were 25 defendants presented before the court. There were five domestic violence defendants and one sex abuse defendant.

The sex abuse defendant has two additional pending cases where he is charged with simple assault and sex abuse. 

According to the prosecution, the judge who presides over his pending cases, Judge James Crowell, had requested that he be held at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in order to undergo mental health treatment and further analysis.

Given the circumstances surrounding his cases and Judge Crowell’s request, Judge Juliet McKenna decided to hold the defendant at the hospital until his next hearing, which is scheduled for May 13.

One of the domestic violence defendants was brought in on a bench warrant for failing to appear at his probation hearing. The defendant was released with an order to check in with his probation officer and return to court on June 2.

The four additional domestic violence defendants have charges including simple assault, attempted threats to do bodily harm and possession of a prohibited weapon.

Two of the defendants were given stay-away orders from the alleged victims and one was given an order not to harass, assault, threaten or stalk (HATS) the complainant.

The final defendant was ordered not to physically discipline their children and to abide by any conditions set by the DC Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA).

They were all ordered to return to court on Nov. 12 for status hearings.

Case Acquitted: Judge Releases Homicide Defendant into High Intensity Supervision Program

This case was acquitted on Nov. 15, 2023.

A DC Superior Court judge agreed to release a murder defendant into the High Intensity Supervision Program (HISP).

Michael Austin, 26, is charged with second-degree murder while armed in the shooting of 26-year-old Kayvon Kinney on the 1800 block of Gainesville Street, SE, on May 24, 2020.  

Judge Milton Lee told Austin that, upon release, he must start GPS monitoring and immediately resolve the outstanding extraditable warrant he has in Maryland. Then, he is to spend 30 days on home confinement. After that, he will be under the standard HISP conditions.

Austin’s next hearing is scheduled for Oct. 5.

Judge Continues Ascertainment of Counsel Hearing for Homicide Defendant

A DC Superior Court judge continued an April 29 ascertainment of counsel hearing for a defendant charged in two homicide cases. 

Rasheed Young, 43, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in the 1996 shooting of 26-year-old Cedric Rogers. On June 11 of that year, Rogers and others were playing basketball on the 300 block of Franklin Street, NE when he was shot four times, according to court documents.

Young is also charged with second-degree murder while armed in the shooting of 39-year-old Ronald William Richardson, Jr on May 20, 2018, on the 2300 block of 4th Street, NE.

Young was arrested for both homicides last December.

During the April 29 hearing, the defense attorney for both cases, Bernadette Armand, said the defendant is not sure if he will retain new counsel. The potential new attorney, Dorsey Jones, plans to meet with Young at DC Jail soon to talk about it. 

Judge Judith Smith scheduled an ascertainment of counsel hearing for both cases for May 26. 

Judge Holds Domestic Violence Defendant with Multiple Cases Involving the Same Victim

During initial hearings on May 6, a DC Superior Court Judge held a domestic violence defendant with multiple cases.

There were 25 defendants presented before the court, five involved domestic violence and two  invovled sexual assault.

Judge Sean Staples held a defendant who is charged with simple assault, attempted possession of a prohibited weapon and attempted threats to do bodily harm. The defendant was also brought in on a bench warrant for failing to appear at his hearing in another domestic violence case. In his second case, he is charged with simple assault and contempt.

The defendant also has an additional pending domestic violence case, and Judge Staples decided to hold the defendant because all of his cases involve the same complaining witness. Defense counsel requested GPS monitoring, but Judge Staples said he had been placed on that before and failed to comply. 

The defendant’s next hearing is scheduled for May 25.

Two defendants were brought in on bench warrants alone for failing to appear at their hearings. One of the defendants has three pending domestic violence cases, and the other is convicted of attempted third-degree sex abuse.

Both defendants were released and given new court dates of May 10 and May 12, respectively.

Three additional domestic violence defendants were presented before the court with charges of attempted second-degree cruelty to children, attempted threats to do bodily harm, simple assault and attempted possession of a prohibited weapon.

All three defendants were given stay-away orders from the alleged victims and were ordered to return to court on Nov. 10.

The final defendant is charged with first-degree child sex abuse. The prosecution did not request a hold, but asked the judge to order him to stay away from the alleged victim.

Judge Staples granted the stay-away request and released the defendant under the supervision of the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA).

He will also return to court on Nov. 10.

Judge Finds Probable Cause in Double Homicide Case

A DC Superior Court judge ruled there was evidence against a double homicide defendant to bring his case  to trial.  

Antoine Turner, 27, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder while armed in connection with the shootings of Demetrius Benson and Demeitri Anderson. On Nov. 3, 2020, Benson, 24, was shot in the armpit on 4500 block of Dix Street, NE. Then, on Nov. 29, 2020, Anderson, 23, was shot 13 times on the 4500 block of Benning Road, SE. 

During the May 5 hearing, the prosecution argued video surveillance footage and cellphone tower pings place Turner at the  scene of Benson’s death. 

The prosecution also noted that the shooter’s car, which was caught in video surveillance, was later identified by license plate recognition software and linked to Turner. The car was determined to be an Enterprise rental registered under Turner’s relative’s name with Turner’s number used as the contact number. 

The prosecution said, based on forensic evidence, it was determined the shooter was in the driver’s seat and DNA evidence suggests Turner’s DNA was all over the gear shift, steering wheel and driver door panel. She ended by emphasizing that, although Turner’s relative was also in the car at the time of the shooting, video surveillance points to Turner as the shooter based on their distinctive haircut differences. 

Defense attorney Matthew Davies argued, based on the prosecution’s case, one would have to assume Turner was the shooter. Davies pointed out that the DNA evidence did not definitely place Turner in the driver’s seat and could not distinguish Turner from his relative. Davies said the DNA expert’s actual opinion was that he could not exclude Turner from the DNA profile, which also included three other people’s DNA profiles.

Davies ended by saying the prosecution’s evidence was scant in this case and that the evidence only roughly pinpoints where the gunshots came from but cannot definitively rule out that the shots did not come from another car. He also said the only fingerprints lifted from the vehicle were on the driver’s side and belonged to Turner’s relative.

In the arguments regarding Anderson’s death, the prosecution said the distinctive red car identified in the shooting was discovered to be another Enterprise rental again linked to Turner. The prosecution played over 26 surveillance clips that showed the clothes Turner wore the day of the shooting and a rough time frame of his “comings and goings.” The prosecution said these clips were important because they establish that he consistently wore the same black shoes, white socks and black pants, which differentiates him from another subject in this case and fits the description of the shooter. 

The prosecution said cell phone tower pings again placed Turner near the shooting at the time it occurred. She also said the firearm found discarded at the scene has DNA evidence that strongly supports Turner to be the biggest DNA contributor out of four other people’s DNA found on the gun. 

The prosecution ended by noting that, closely after the shooting, Turner changed his phone number, which was the number used on record for the Enterprise rental. She also said that when the rental was returned, it was cleaned out with many chemicals but that experts were still able to get forensics that could not exclude Turner. 

Davies again argued the court would have to make an assumption that Turner was the shooter in this case. He pointed out that a second subject could also be a major contributor to the DNA found on the firearm because the expert could not definitively say that the DNA was Turner’s over the other subject. 

After hearing both sides, Judge Marisa Demeo agreed with the prosecution’s arguments and found probable cause. She ruled that Turner is to remain held at DC Jail.

The next hearing is scheduled for June 6.


Document: 14-Year-Old Arrested for Murder

A juvenile was arrested in connection with a homicide that happened on May 2.

At around 9:00 p.m., Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers responded to the 2200 block of Minnesota Avenue, SE, for the report of a stabbing.

There, they found 46-year-old Louis Cheeves suffering from multiple stab wounds. He died at an area hospital.

On May 6, a 14-year-old boy was arrested in connection with Cheeves’ death.

Crime Alerts: May 6-7

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) sent out one crime alert between 9:00 p.m. on May 6 and 9:00 a.m. on May 7.

The alert was sent at 3:31 a.m. for a stabbing on the 1200 block of 13th Street, NW.

Police are looking for a Black male with a heavy build.

Crime Alerts: May 5-6

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) sent out one crime alert between 9:00 p.m. on May 5 and 9:00 a.m. on May 6.

The alert was sent at 11:22 p.m. for an armed robbery on the 800 block of Ingraham Street, NW.

Police are looking for two Black males wearing dark clothing. They were last seen in a red Mercedes Benz with Maryland tags 7EJ5619.