The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) is investigating a destruction of property offense that occurred on Dec. 12 as “potentially being motivated in whole or in part by hate or bias,” according to a press release.
Detectives are seeking the public’s help identifying suspects of the offense, who were captured by cameras.
At around 6:00 p.m., suspects removed and then destroyed a sign that was displayed on an establishment on the 1500 block of M Street, NW. They then fled the scene.
“A designation as a hate or bias-motivated crime by MPD does not mean that prosecutors will prosecute it as a hate crime,” the press release states.
The press release also states that “the designation can be changed at any point as an investigation proceeds and more information is gathered.”
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) arrested a Maryland resident who allegedly traveled to DC on Dec. 14 after arranging a sexual act with a child in exchange for money.
The 56 year-old suspect was apprehended without incident upon arrival, according to a press release. He was arrested for sex trafficking of children and arranging for sexual contact with a real or fictitious child.
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives arrested a suspect in connection with a homicide that happened on Oct. 9.
At around 9:56 p.m., officers responded to the 1600 block of W Street, SE for the sounds of gunshots. There, they found 28 year-old Yisa Jeffcoat, of Southeast, DC. He was taken to the hospital, but ultimately pronounced dead.
Kevin Goggins, 20, was arrested on Dec. 14.
According to a press release, Goggins has an arrest history that includes gambling and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
Between 8 p.m. on Dec. 14 and 9 a.m. on Dec. 15, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) sent out one crime alert.
The alert was sent at 8:51 p.m. for a shooting on the 400 block of Delafield Place, NW. Police are looking for a pick-up truck, which was last seen fleeing the area.
Responding Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers found another juvenile victim on the 600 block of Rhode Island Avenue, NW suffering from a gunshot wound to the right leg. The second victim was to a local hospital, where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and released.
According to court documents, the defendants were involved in a gang in DC. The defendants were allegedly getting revenge for the killing of a fellow gang member in the same area.
Judge Danya Dayson scheduled the defendants for a hearing on May 15, 2021.
The defendants will continue to be held at DC Jail, where they have been since their arrests in May.
Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s (MPD) major crash investigations unit are investigating a traffic fatality that occurred at approximately 4:17 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2020 at the intersection of Minnesota Avenue and L’Enfant Square SE.
The vehicle failed to negotiate a turn and left the roadway. When the vehicle left the roadway, it struck a pedestrian on the sidewalk inside a parking area. The pedestrian has been identified as 32 year-old Loleita Patricia Gross of Southeast, DC.
The vehicle’s occupants fled the scene and the vehicle was left on the scene.
DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services responded to the scene and transported the victim to a local hospital. After all life-saving efforts failed, The victim was pronounced dead.
On Thursday, Dec. 10, MPD detectives arrested a suspect in connection to the traffic fatality. The suspect, 33 year-old Rosa Bishop of Southeast DC, has been arrested and is being charged with second-degree murder.
A DC Superior Court judge ruled that the evidence against two defendants is strong enough to bring their cases to trial. One of the defendants is charged with murder, while the other is charged with obstruction of justice and tampering with physical evidence.
Reginald Hooks, 35, is charged with second-degree murder while armed for allegedly stabbing 22-year-old Dy’Mani Priestley on Jan 5 on the 1200 block of U Street, NW.
His co-defendant, Ladaryl Canty, 49, is accused of taking the murder weapon from a witness a few days after the homicide. The murder weapon has not been recovered.
The defense alleges that Canty returned the murder weapon to the witness who was not aware the knife was used in a crime.
The prosecution alleges that the stabbing occurred after Hooks and Priestly were involved in an altercation between two groups of people.
The prosecution produced video evidence that allegedly shows Hooks lunging at the victim’s chest. However, the video did not show a clear picture and defense attorney James King pointed out that there was no knife visible in the video.
King also said the video does not show the victim clutching his chest or reacting to the lunge in any way.
“When the government chooses to call witnesses who are far removed from the facts of the case, they do so at their own peril,” he said.
He also pointed out that the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective only spoke to three of the witnesses and gave little additional evidence to what was already described in court documents.
In regards to Canty, the prosecutor argued that a witness told investigating detectives that he had given the murder weapon to Canty. She also argued that Canty knew Hooks was involved in a stabbing.
Defense attorney Kevin Mosley, Canty’s attorney, argued that the detective did not speak to the witness and could not offer any additional facts about the interaction. Mosley also argued that the prosecution cannot prove what his client knew at what time.
DC Superior Court judges issued 59 bench warrants for felony charges from June 1 to Sept. 30.
According to Cornell Law, a bench warrant is given out by a judge after a defendant violates the rules of court. Most times, a bench warrant is issued when a defendant fails to show at their hearings.
The 59 defendants who received warrants were charged with drug-related offenses (15) and weapon possession (16).
From June to the end of September, the number of bench warrants issued by judges increased from month-to-month. The number of bench warrants issued in September more than tripled the amount in June.
When examining the defendant’s prior felony convictions, the most common prior conviction was for weapon possession charges. Of the 59 defendants, 14 of them have been convicted of felonies in the past.
Bench Warrant Charges
Weapon possession is the most common charge for the bench warrants during this time period. The charges include carrying a pistol without a license, unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of an unregistered firearm.
Of these defendants, only Clifton, 54, has a prior felony conviction. He was convicted for armed robbery and prisoner escape in two different cases.
General, 20, has no prior felony convictions but is currently charged with second-degree murder while armed in the fatal shooting of 11-year-old Davon McNeal on the 1400 block of Cedar Street, SE on July 4.
On Oct. 2, probable cause was found during a preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to go to trial. General’s co-defendants in the case are 23-year-old Christen Wingfield, Marcel Gordon, 25, and Daryle Bond, 19. General is currently being held at the DC Jail.
Grandy, 35, Scott, 19, and Dyson, 40 are all currently on probation while the others are on pretrial release, with the exception of Logan, 23.
Logan had his probation revoked and was resentenced to 18 months and 135 days in prison for two separate cases on Oct. 30.
Four of the other defendants, who received bench warrants, are scheduled for status hearings.
Twenty-three year old Blakeney’s court date is scheduled for Feb. 9, 2021; DeAndre, 22, is scheduled for April 14, 2021; General’s is scheduled for Jan. 13, 2021; and Clifton is scheduled for Dec. 18.
Three of the defendants, Malloy, 23, West, 23, and Dyson, have show cause hearings scheduled on Jan. 5, 2021; Jan. 25, 2021; and Dec. 22, respectively.
Four of the defendants are still on bench warrant status, including Odoms, Scott, Benny and Eddy.
Grandy had his most recent probation show cause hearing discharged on Oct. 22 with no further date set.
Drug Possession
Drug charges make up more than 20 percent of the charges defendants were facing when they received the bench warrants.
Drug charges include unlawful possession, possession with intent to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance as well as possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance while armed.
Johnson, 54, and Forth, 49, are the only defendants out of the seven who were on probation rather than pretrial release.
Two of the five defendants have prior felony convictions but only one has a prior violent offense. Whoie, 47, was convicted of felony assault on a police officer from an incident in 2017.
Johnson, Forth and Pryor still have active bench warrants out for their arrests as of Dec. 8.
Reese did not appear at a show cause hearing that was scheduled for Dec. 10. The bench warrant was forwarded to the United States Marshals Service.
Norman and Whoie’s show cause hearing is scheduled for Jan. 19, 2021, and Jan. 21, 2021, respectively.
Stubbs’ case is scheduled for a status hearing on March 30, 2021.
Herman Johnson, a defendant charged with drug possession has two prior convictions for the same charge — distribution of a controlled substance.
In October 2016, Johnson was sentenced to 17 months in prison with credit for time served. In December 2019, for his second conviction, he was sentenced to six months in prison with credit for time served. He was charged with the distribution of heroin on Jan. 31, 2018.
Johnson, 41, was issued a bench warrant on Sept. 11 for not showing up to his hearing.
Johnson’s next hearing is scheduled for Dec. 14. He is currently being held at the DC Jail.
Of the five defendants, two have prior felony convictions with none of them relating to violence.
Christian, who was also charged with assault on a police officer and resisting arrest along with her unlawful possession charge, was apprehended on Oct. 9. She is currently on release and must report to the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA.) Her next status hearing is scheduled for Feb. 21, 2021.
Kearns has a scheduled bench warrant return hearing on April 9, 2021, that was originally rescheduled due to a court emergency in September.
Robertson is scheduled for a status hearing in his case on Feb. 5, 2021.
Haney still has an active bench warrant out for his arrest, and Weaver was sentenced to six months in prison that was suspended along with one year of probation on Oct. 28.
Burglary
More than 16 percent of defendants who received bench warrants have charges for burglary. Of the 11 burglary cases, eight involve charges of second-degree burglary, two involve charges of attempted second-degree burglary and one involves a charge of first-degree burglary.
One of these defendants has a prior felony conviction. Ralph Wesley, 52, was convicted of second-degree burglary in 2017.
In Wesley’s current case his next scheduled court date is set for March 11.
On Dec. 11, a DC Superior Court judge presided over eight hearings for defendants who were reported to not be complying with the requirements of their probation or pretrial release.
Judge Robert Okun stopped one of the hearings when he noticed the defendant looked as though he was in pain.
Antonio Mickel is charged with possession of cocaine.
Mickel, appearing over the video, was attempting to enter into a guilty plea. Halfway through the hearing, Mickel began to act like he was experiencing significant pain. Defense attorney Stephen Ridell told the court that his client checked out of the hospital on Dec. 10 against medical advice in order to attend the hearing.
“In an abundance of caution, I don’t think we should go forward with this hearing,” said Judge Okun.
Mickel said he was fine and that he wanted to continue; however, Judge Okun rescheduled the hearing for Dec. 17.
Judge Okun decided to terminate William Dews’ probation as unsuccessful after hearing arguments from Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA) and the defense.
Dews, 58, is on probation for destruction of property of less than $1,000.
A CSOSA representative said they had spoken casually over the phone, but Dews was resistant to supervision requirements and requested Judge Okun revoke Dew’s probation.
Defense attorney Raymond Jones argued that his client has completed community service, served jail time for this non-violent offense and paid restitution. He also said that CSOSA filed a complaint with the court six days before his client’s probation was to end even though the alleged violation occurred months prior.
Judge Okun said he did not believe that Dews was a danger to society because of probation violations, but he also believed the defendant’s probation has not been successful.
During John Parker’s hearing, attorneys requested that Judge Okun continue the hearing because the parties needed to finalize a plea agreement.
Parker is charged with carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business.
Since his release, Parker has been non-compliant with pretrial release agreements and his GPS battery has been dead since November.
Defense attorney Jonathan Armstrong told the judge that both he and his client had gone to the PSA office prior to the hearing; however, Parker was not feeling well and failed the symptom check at the door.
Judge Okun decided to continue the hearing to Dec 18.
William Brock is charged with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction, carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business, possession of liquid PCP, failure to register as a firearms offender, possession of ammunition, attempted assault with a dangerous weapon and attempt to distribute a controlled substance.
CSOSA told Judge Okun that Brock has been non-compliant with release requirements and was requesting that his pretrial release be revoked.
“It’s a lack of desire to come into compliance,” the prosecutor said.
However, Judge Okun decided to give Brock another chance to come into compliance with pretrial release requirements.
Judge Okun scheduled the next hearing for Jan 13.
Judge Okun discharged a pretrial matter for Jamal Baptist; however, he continued two probation hearings for Feb. 10.
Baptist is on pretrial release for a Temporary Protection Order (TPO) violation and on probation for contempt, lewd, indecent, or obscene behavior, and unlawful entry charges.
During a defendant’s hearing, defense attorney Janai Reed said she has been unable to locate her client and verify his address. She requested a continuance in order to do so.
The defendant is charged with unlawful entry. The case was dismissed on Oct. 19, 2021, after the defendant completed a diversion program.
Judge Okun granted her request and set the next hearing date for Jan 13.
Judge Okun continued Mecca Lee Bey’s hearing until Jan 13 due to the defendant being detained in Montgomery County, Md.
Bey is charged with distribution of a controlled substance.
Judge Okun issued a bench warrant for Jamar Byrd after he failed to appear in court.
A DC Superior Court judge held three defendants and released 24 during initial hearings on Dec. 12.
Michael Curtis is charged with simple assault for allegedly assaulting a victim and a police officer on Dec. 11.
According to court documents Curtis, 31, allegedly approached the victim, asking for money. When the victim refused, Curtis lashed out and hit the victim multiple times. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers arrived on the scene and apprehended Curtis, who then resisted arrest, injuring an officer in the process.
Curtis will be held at DC jail until his next hearing, which is scheduled for Dec. 29.
Lewis McCarson is being charged with a Civil Protection Order (CPO) violation, contempt, simple assault and attempted threats to do bodily harm. McCarson was also brought before the court in two bench warrants for failing to appear in court.
On Dec. 11, on the 3500 block of A Street, SE, an MPD officer allegedly observed McCarson, 47, walking on the sidewalk. The officer, having prior knowledge of an arrest warrant being out on McCarson, asked him to identify himself. After he did so, the MPD officer arrested McCarson.
Judge Sean Staples found probable cause, citing the defendant’s additional pending CPO violation charge. He decided to release him on his new charges but granted the prosecution’s request to hold him in his bench warrants, based on the violations.
McCarson will be held at DC jail until his next court hearing, which is scheduled for Dec. 16.
Leon Winder is charged with possession of ammunition and a firearm with a prior conviction in a Federal charge.
“I have no choice but to hold you until Monday for you to be seen in Federal Court,” Judge Staples said.
Leon Winder will be held at DC jail until his next hearing on Dec. 14.
Of the 24 defendants that Judge Staples released, eight of them were charged with domestic violence-related offenses. Some of those charges include attempted threats to do bodily harm, simple assault, possession of a prohibited weapon and contempt. All eight defendants were ordered to report to the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) and issued stay-away orders from people and places. They are all scheduled to return to court on May 14, 2021.
Ten defendants who were charged with misdemeanors were released. Some of the underlying charges include cruelty to animals, simple assault, attempted possession of a prohibited weapon, attempted second-degree theft and unauthorized use of a vehicle. All defendants were released under PSA and ordered to return to court on May 14, 2021. Only a few of the defendants were issued stay-away orders.
Among those released were four defendants with felony charges. The charges were carrying a pistol without a license, assault with a dangerous weapon, possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and unarmed carjacking. They were released on their personal recognizance to return to court and ordered to check in with PSA.
One fugitive from the state of Maryland is wanted for vehicle theft. Judge Staples released the defendant so he could turn himself in to the demanding jurisdiction. His next court hearing is scheduled for Feb. 3, 2021.
A defendant charged with possession of an unregistered firearm was released. The defendant was ordered to report to PSA and return to court on May 14, 2021.
A DC Superior Court judge vacated a Dec. 11 sentencing after the prosecution filed a motion to reschedule the hearing.
Rasheed Murray pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in July of 2018 after initially being charged with second-degree murder, reckless driving and a DUI. According to court documents, Murray, 33, was racing a 28-year-old down 16th street, NW on July 19, 2015. Murray lost control of the vehicle and struck 24-year-old Matthew Roth, who died from his injuries.
The prosecution filed a motion on Nov. 25 to continue the sentencing until next year to allow Thompson’s family to attend the hearing in person, which is not possible at the moment due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives seek the public’s help identifying a suspect in connection with an assault on a police officer offense that happened on Dec. 12.
At around 7:05 p.m., the suspect and another individual were engaged in a physical altercation on the 1600 block of K Street, NW.
According to a press release, an on-duty MPD officer, tried to intervene when the suspect struck them with an unknown object.
The officer was treated for serious but non-life threatening injuries at a local hospital.
The first arrest was made on the day of the incident. A 29 year-old resident of Northeast, DC was apprehended by police and arrested for assault with a dangerous weapon after allegedly stabbing four victims, all of whom were taken to a hospital with non life-threatening injuries.
According to a press release, the stabbings happened on the 500 block of 11th Street, NW after a verbal altercation between the suspect and the victims escalated into a physical one.
The simple assault arrest came as a result of the detectives’ investigation. The detectives are also trying to identify other suspects, who were captured by cameras.
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives have arrested a suspect in connection with two assaults on a police officer.
The first offense occurred on May 31 at around 7:35 p.m. when the suspect allegedly approached and assaulted an MPD officer on the 1400 block of H Street, NW.
The second offense occurred at around 11:00 p.m. on Dec. 12 on the 1500 block of K Street, NW. The suspect allegedly assaulted an on-duty MPD officer and immediately fled the scene.
A 30-year-old resident of Rockville, Md. was arrested on Dec. 12.
