A DC Superior Court judge rescheduled a March 12 trial readiness hearing since the defense counsel was could not appear in court.
Marquette Jordan, 28, is charged with first-degree murder while armed with a knife and threats to kidnap or injure a person. On April 30, 2018, Jordan allegedly stabbed Ivan Lynch, 48, on the 900 block of 5th Street, SE.
Judge Danya Dayson rescheduled the trial readiness hearing to April 5.
A DC Superior Court judge continued a March 12 trial readiness hearing for a murder case.
Kewon Hunter, 19, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, conspiracy, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and carrying a pistol without a license. He and his co-defendant, Stephon Evans, 19, are charged in connection with the shooting of 21-year-old Dion DeMarco Boyd on July 30, 2018, on the 1400 block of Maryland Avenue, NE.
His co-defendant, whose case was not heard today, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, conspiracy, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and assault with the intention to kill while armed.
The trial readiness hearing for Evans and Hunter’s case is set for April 7.
Evans is also charged with first-degree murder while armed, conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, assault with intent to kill while armed, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence in the death of 21-year-old Michael Taylor on the 1700 block of Benning Road, NE on Jan. 12, 2019. He is being charged along with four other defendants in that case.
Vanessa Sousa wrote this article.
During initial hearings on March 11, a DC Superior Court judge presided over five domestic violence cases and one sex abuse case.
In total, there were 23 cases presented before the court with an additional two defendants who were in the hospital, so their cases could not be heard.
Judge Lloyd Nolan held a male defendant charged with first-degree sexual abuse by force.
Defense counsel requested that the defendant be released into the High Intensity Supervision Program (HISP) and placed on GPS tracking with a stay-away order. The prosecution, however, said that GPS tracking would not make sense in this case because the defendant and the victim live in the same building.
According to court documents, the victim had turned away the defendant after he insisted on going into her apartment for drinks. Later that day, the victim left her apartment to take out the trash. The defendant then grabbed the victim from behind and forced her into the apartment where he sexually assaulted her.
Judge Nolan said based on the nature of the charges, the defendant will be held at DC Jail. He is scheduled for a status hearing on March 31.
Judge Nolan also held Alonzo Miles who was brought in on a bench warrant after failing to appear at his probation hearing in 2017. In that domestic violence case, he was convicted of simple assault.
Miles was also brought in on two additional bench warrants for failing to appear at his hearings in two additional misdemeanor matters.
Miles will be held at the jail until his next hearing, which is scheduled for March 18.
Judge Nolan issued stay-away orders for defendants charged with misdemeanors in domestic violence cases and ordered them to call the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) once a week.
The four misdemeanor domestic violence defendants have charges, including simple assault, destruction of property less than $1,000, and attempted threats to do bodily harm.
The defendants are scheduled to return on Aug. 12.
Parties debated if a child sex abuse defendant should remain at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital, DC’s psychiatric institution, where he has spent over a decade of his life, following new developments in his case.
The defendant was charged with first-degree child sex abuse back in 2009 and, one year later, he was found unlikely to become competent to stand trial in the foreseeable future. He was then committed to St. Elizabeth’s under the Sexual Psychopath Act (SPA) until the law was invalidated last year due to the defense’s successful effort to challenge it. He was then once again found unlikely to become competent in the foreseeable future and parties are now awaiting a final order on a civil commitment.
According to the prosecution, the Department for Disability Services (DDS) and the Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) would likely file a joint petition for civil commitment. The DBH is also reportedly going to consider if the defendant should be committed to inpatient or outpatient therapy.
The prosecution wants the defendant to remain at St. Elizabeth’s pending a final order on civil commitment.
“The government makes this request for prudential reasons, as well as serious concerns about the defendant’s dangerousness, which, for all intents and purposes, can no longer be addressed through the criminal justice system,” the prosecution said.
Defense attorneys Dana Page and Adam Thompson argued that the defendant should not be held because he is not mentally ill, but intellectually disabled, which does not merit his current hold.
Judge Danya Dayson acknowledged the parties arguments but emphasized she could not move forward with making a decision until both sides submitted written answers to the question, “if there is no mental illness being alleged then what authority does the court have to hold a person at a mental health facility?”
“If in fact someone is not mentally ill, but intellectually disabled, what is DBH’s ability to hold or treat the person?” she asked. “If a person has been found to be incompetent due to an intellectual disability, what is DBH’s stance on giving treatment to them and what is the court’s authority to order it?”
Judge Dayson continued the March 11 hearing so the prosecution could reply to the defense’s response to their request for continued treatment.
She ordered the prosecution to submit answers by March 18 and the defense to submit any remaining filings by March 23. Judge Dayson said she would make a ruling once parties submitted responses and she had read up on the case.
The hearing will resume on March 25. In the meantime, the defendant will remain held at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) sent out one crime alert between 9:00 p.m. on March 11 and 9:00 a.m. on March 12.
The alert was sent at 9:25 p.m. for a robbery investigation on the 2500 block of Pennsylvania Avenue, SE.
Police do not have a description of the suspect(s) involved in the incident.
A DC Superior Court judge vacated a mental observation hearing for a murder defendant.
Darnell Rackett, 19, was charged for the July 4, 2020, shooting death of Antonio Gardiner, 36, on the 1500 block of Pennsylvania Ave, SE.
Parties did not show up to the March 11 hearing, and Judge Marisa Demeo said that the mental health report was not completed.
Another mental health observation hearing is scheduled for March 30.
A juvenile was also arrested and charged with murder in the case. The juvenile is scheduled for a hearing on April 15.
A DC Superior Court judge scheduled another hearing for a sex abuse defendant to give him time to resolve a pending parole matter in a different case.
The 46 year-old defendant is charged with third-degree sex abuse for allegedly sexually assaulting a medical staff member who was caring for him on July 8, 2020.
During the March 11 hearing, defense attorney Bernadette Armand said that her client was granted release on cash bond in this matter but had a parole hold in another matter. Armand said, because the defendant has been held in that matter for nine months, he should qualify for an earlier trial date.
Judge Juliet McKenna said the parole matter is not under the court’s authority and, because the defendant is released on bond in this criminal matter, his time served does not make him eligible to receive an earlier trial date.
The next hearing is scheduled for June 15.
A homicide defendant, who was granted compassionate release from prison in Octoberdue to the COVID-19 pandemic, was reported to be doing generally well on probation.
Back in 2016, Loretta Beckwith was sentenced to serve 7.5 years for voluntary manslaughter for stabbing her 54-year-old boyfriend, Kenneth Fogle, with a kitchen knife following an argument they had in a hallway outside their basement apartment on the 3200 block of 23rd Street, SE on June 13, 2015.
During the Oct. 11 probation review hearing, the second one since her release, a Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA) representative said that Beckwith has secured stable housing in DC, has not tested positive for illicit substances and is making progress in maintaining communication with them.
“I feel like [things are] going slow, but much better,” Beckwith told Judge Julie Becker, who congratulated her on her progress.
In 2020, the defendant, now 53, motioned for a compassionate release.
She wrote a letter to DC Superior Court Judge Rhonda Reid-Winston, detailing the steps she has taken towards rehabilitation while living at a medium security prison in West Virginia. She took several classes, never received a disciplinary report and maintained a job until the pandemic, according to her letter.
She also outlined her several medical conditions, which could put her at a higher risk if she contracts the coronavirus.
“I’m very afraid for my life,” she wrote to the judge. “I don’t want to die here.”
Last October, Judge Reid-Winston granted the motion, reducing her sentence to time served and putting her on five years of supervised probation. Conditions of the probation include a mental health screening and evaluation as well as mental health and substance abuse assessment and treatment.
Judge Becker decided not to schedule another follow up hearing.
A DC Superior Court judge continued a March 9 trial readiness hearing for a murder case to August.
Larry Brown, 34, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in the death of 33-year-old Derrick Wright. On March 24, 2018, Wright was found with multiple stab wounds on the 1300 block of Florida Avenue, NE.
During the March 9 hearing, defense attorney Roderick Thompson requested to have motions filed in the month of July and to pursue the trial readiness hearing with the defendant’s presence waived.
Judge Danya Dayson suggested that parties schedule another hearing because the earliest trial date they could set at this time isn’t until October of 2022.
Parties agreed to meet again on Aug. 23 for a trial readiness hearing. In the meantime, Judge Dayson set aside Oct. 3 through Nov. 2, 2022, for the jury trial.
Brown is also charged with possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and assault with intent to kill while armed in this case.
The next trial readiness hearing is scheduled for Aug. 23.
This article was written by Adriana Montes.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) sent out one crime alert between 9:00 p.m. on March 10 and 9:00 a.m. on March 11.
The alert was sent at 2:08 a.m. for a stabbing on the 1400 block of Montana Avenue, NE.
Police do not have a description of the suspect(s) involved in the incident.
A DC Superior Court judge ruled that the case against a defendant accused of killing his mother has enough evidence to go to trial, but only on a lesser homicide charge.
Seth Andrews, 34, was initially charged with first-degree murder in the death of his mother, 67-year-old Hazel Evans, on the unit block of 35th Street, SE on July 16, 2020.
On March 10, Judge Neal Kravitz ruled that there is only probable cause for second-degree murder.
According to court documents, an autopsy revealed that the victim’s injuries were consistent with strangulation.
During the preliminary hearing, the prosecution played a portion of the 911 call the defendant made on the day of the homicide.
“It’s my fault mommy, I’m sorry I didn’t want to kill you mommy, I’m sorry,” the defendant said during the call.
They also played a video clip of Andrews waiting in the police station. “I killed my mother,” he is heard saying. “I’m going to hell.”
A Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective on the case testified that blood found at the crime scene was likely a match for Andrews’ DNA. The detective said this blood may have come from a large cut Andrews had on his wrist from one of two separate assaults he had been accused of committing the day before the murder.
The assault cases have been dismissed.
Defense attorney John Armstrong argued that, while Andrews demonstrated erratic behavior during the week of the homicide, none of the witnesses in the case reported that he was violent or that his mother was afraid of him.
Judge Neal Kravitz said that Andrew’s actions before and after the incident were not consistent with the patterns of premeditated murder. He described the homicide as something that was done “quickly and without any forethought.”
Judge Kravitz denied the defense’s motion for release, so Andrews will remain held at DC Jail.
A felony status conference is scheduled for May 10.
Sasha Ridenour wrote this article.
Sutton was acquitted of murder and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence on March 23, 2023.
A DC Superior Court judge scheduled a homicide defendant to go before a jury.
Kaevon Sutton, 18, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in the shooting of 22-year-old Aujee Tyler on the 3500 block of Stanton Rd., SE on March 19, 2018.
During the March 10 hearing, defense attorney, Joseph Wong, requested that the judge set the earliest possible trial date for his client.
His client is currently being held at the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS).
Judge Danya Dayson scheduled the trial for Nov. 28 through Dec. 22, 2022. She also scheduled a trial readiness hearing for Aug 17.
Sarah Gebrengus wrote this article
A DC Superior Court judge scheduled a preliminary hearing to determine if a case against two murder defendants has enough evidence to go to trial.
Co-defendants Delonta Stevenson, 26, and Vorreze Thomas, 23, are both charged with first-degree murder while armed in the death of 32-year-old Terrence Allen on Jan. 18 on the 3000 block of Stanton Road, SE.
D.C Witness previously reported that Stevenson and Thomas allegedly cut Allen off in a vehicle before shooting close to 50 rounds at Allen’s car.
According to a police report, Stevenson is suspected to have been in the passenger seat and is believed to be the individual who shot at Allen and two other victims who sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Judge Robert Okun scheduled the preliminary hearing for April 26.
Brennan Fiske and Dalvyn Velez wrote this article.
A DC Superior Court judge continued a hearing to late April for a defendant charged with first-degree sexual abuse.
The 42-year-old defendant is accused of sexually abusing a 17-year-old girl.
During the March 10 hearing, the prosecution asked Judge Milton Lee for a continuance. Judge Lee granted the request, scheduling the next hearing for April 27.
A decision on whether a murder case has enough evidence to go to trial came nearer as parties delivered their closing arguments on March 8.
Co-defendants Trey Prillerman, 16, Nelfy Hernandez, 17, and Deandre Levy, 19, are charged with first-degree murder while armed for their alleged roles in the fatal shooting of 1- year-old Taijhon Wyatt, Jr on Aug. 10, 2020.
The three are accused of shooting blindly into a group of juveniles from the inside of a vehicle on the 5500 block of 9th Street, NW.
“This has to be fairly characterized as one of the thinnest homicide charges ever brought,” said Prillerman’s attorney, Alvin Thomas.
A Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective completed his testimony from the last hearing, explaining that phone location data and cell phone records picked up Prillerman’s phone on cell towers in the neighborhood at the time of the homicide. However, Thomas argued that there was “no evidence Mr. Prillerman had the phone on him that day.”
The detective said that the MPD hopes to complete DNA testing from the suspected car, though he “doesn’t know the stage of testing, or if swabs have been obtained from the defendants.”
The detective also said that, at this current time, no physical evidence has tied any of the three defendants to the shooting. There has also been no identification of them at the scene of the crime besides testimony from one of the witnesses.
This witness identified the three defendants as being on the scene of the crime. However, defense attorneys called into question the reliability of the witness’s statements.
Defense attorney Elizabeth Weller said that she believes the witness may simply be changing the story at will to reduce charges the witness is currently facing.
“This whole case rises and falls on the credibility of someone who’s a stone cold liar; lying to avoid responsibility for his own misdeeds,” Weller said.
Due to time constraints, the proceeding did not finish.
Judge Danya Dayson scheduled the hearing to continue on March 19. She is expected to make her finding at that time.
Brennan Fiske wrote this article.
