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Judge Congratulates Homicide Defendant for Doing Well on Probation

A homicide defendant, who was recently granted a compassionate release, was reported not to be having any issues with his probation.

In 2009, Aaron Williams was sentenced to 18.75 years with credit for time served for second-degree murder while armed and conspiracy after making a plea deal with the prosecution.

During the March 15 probation review hearing, a Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA) agent said Williams has been removed from GPS monitoring and has been in full compliance with his probation and has no issues. It was also mentioned that he has been working a job for the past three weeks and is enjoying being with his family.

Judge Julie Becker told Williams she will not be setting another court date unless something goes wrong.

“I wish you the best of luck, congratulations,” she said.

Williams and his defense attorney, Jesse Winograd, asked for a compassionate release in September 2020.

Williams wrote a letter to Judge Becker discussing the medical conditions that could put him at a greater risk if he gets the coronavirus. 

“I have been almost a model inmate who is currently at a minimum status with a lot of family support,” he wrote.

Judge Becker granted the request, placing the defendant on five years of supervised probation the following December.

Sarah Gebrengus wrote this article.

Prosecution Hopes to Get Indictment Within 2 Months for 2019 Homicide Case

A prosecutor is hoping to indict a homicide defendant who was arrested in November 2019 within the next two months. 

Terrance Prue, 20, is charged with first-degree murder while armed for allegedly shooting of 39 -year-old Bruce Gilmore on the 3500 block of 22nd Street, SE on June 5, 2019. 

Back in October, defense attorney Brandi Harden filed a motion for the case to be dismissed, in part due to allegations that her client’s speedy trial rights were violated. 

During the March 15 hearing, the prosecution reported that they have extended a global plea deal that would apply to both this case and another in which he is charged with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. 

However, Harden said she cannot say that the plea deal has been adequatley communicated to Prue due to lack of availability at the jail.

DC Superior Court Judge Judith Smith continued the felony status conference to May 21 for both of Prue’s open cases.

Sasha Ridenour wrote this article. 

Judge Schedules Trials for Two Murder Cases

A DC Superior Court judge continued two trial readiness hearings and scheduled trial dates for two murder cases.

Due to the slow opening of courthouse operations throughout the next year, only two trial courtrooms will be opened for class one felony cases, according to Judge Danya Dayson. More courtrooms will begin to open after.

John McRae, 43, is charged first-degree murder while armed in the shooting of 22-year-old Marty McMillan on Mar. 23, 2017, on the 1900 block of 13th Street, SE.

He is also charged with possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Judge Dayson scheduled his trial readiness hearing to be Aug. 23.  McRae’s codefendant, Shaniah Davis, who is charged with accessory after the fact in the murder, is also scheduled for the hearing.

Davis, 24, was released from jail in 2018.  

Tony White, 48, is charged with first-degree murder while armed in the shooting of Daquan Hooks on Mar. 23 2017, on the 1900 block of 13th Street, SE.

He is also charged with robbery while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm, and carrying a pistol without a license.

Judge Dayson scheduled White’s trial readiness hearing for Sept. 7.

The judge also set aside Jan. 30 to Feb. 21 2023, for McRae’s jury trial. White’s jury trial will be Jan. 19 to 27, 2023. 

Eileen Chen wrote this article.


Document: Homicide in Northeast, DC

Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives are investigating a March 13 homicide that killed an 18 year-old.

At around 9:04 p.m. that day, officers responded to the 1200 block of Irving Street, NE for the report of the sounds of gunshots.

There, they found 18 year-old Isaiah Armstead suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

Document: Maryland Resident Killed in Northwest, DC

Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) are investigating a homicide that happened on the night of March 13.

At around 10:43 p.m., officers responded to the 600 block of O Street, NW for the report of the sounds of gunshots.

There, they found 29 year-old Nicolas Hawkins on a sidewalk with multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Document: Second Suspect Arrested in Connection with Dec. 2020 Homicide

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) arrested a suspect in connection with a homicide that happened on Dec. 21, 2020.

At around 2:32 p.m. that day, officers responded to the intersection of 51st Street and Bass Place, SE for a vehicle stopped in the roadway.

There, they found 25 year-old Maryland resident Tyree Brox inside of a vehicle, suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead on scene.

On March 13, 22 year-old Keshawn Taylor was arrested for first-degree murder while armed.

Previously, on Dec. 30, 2020, 24 year-old Rashad Winston was arrested for the same charge.

Crime Alerts: March 14-15

Between 9:00 p.m. on March 14 and 9:00 a.m. on March 15, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) sent out one crime alert.

The alert was sent at 4:22 a.m. for a stabbing investigation on the 200 block of Mississippi Avenue, SE.

Police are looking for a Black female wearing a black shirt and black sweatpants.

Judge Releases All Domestic Violence Defendants During Initial Hearings

During initial hearings on March 12, DC Superior Court Judge Lloyd Nolan released six defendants charged in domestic violence cases.

Overall, a total of 22 cases were presented before the court, and the judge only held one of these defendants.

Five of the domestic violence defendants were brought in on new charges involving simple assault, destruction of property, leaving after colliding, possession of a controlled substance and attempted threats to do bodily harm.

These defendants were all given stay-away orders and told to call the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) once a week.

They all have status hearings scheduled for Aug. 13.

The final domestic violence defendant, Malik Lewis, was brought in on a bench warrant for failing to appear at a probation hearing in two closed cases. In those cases, he was convicted of simple assault and violation of a Civil Protection Order (CPO).

The judge released Lewis and re-scheduled his probation hearing for April 20.

Preliminary Hearing for Homicide Defendant Begins

March 12 marked the first day of a hearing to determine if a murder case has enough evidence to go to trial.

Marvin Smith, 29, is charged with first-degree murder while armed for allegedly shooting of 41-year-old Eugene Miller on Oct 9, 2020, on the 2400 block of Elvans Road, SE. 

At the start of the hearing, defense attorney Jason Tulley requested the name of one of the prosecutions’ undisclosed witnesses to cross-examine due to their importance in the case. 

“If you hear the witness, your honor, you will not find probable cause,” he told DC Superior Court Judge Yvonne Williams.


From the interview transcript between the persecution’s witness and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives, the witness repeatedly asked about a monetary reward for giving information about the incident.

Tulley said the witness’ statement is questionable due to a possible motive to agree with the government for reward benefits.

Later in the preliminary hearing, an MPD detective said revenge was a probable motive for the homicide. The detective said he believes Smith stole something from the victim months prior. The victim was allegedly fighting with Smith when he was shot.

The detective also noted that the undisclosed witness revealed that Smith said he was the shooter.

After receiving a search warrant, police found a gun in Smith’s home, but it did not match the shell cases from the scene of the crime. There was also no blood found on Smith’s clothing nor any physical evidencing linking the defendant to the shooting. 

Due to time constraints, the proceeding did not finish. Judge Williams scheduled the hearing to pick back up on March 23.

Sarah Gebrengus wrote this article.

Judge Continues Trial Readiness Hearing for Murder Case

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.

Judge Releases 4 Domestic Violence Defendants and Holds a Sex Abuse and a Domestic Violence Defendant During Initial Hearings

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 Debate Hospital Hold for Sex Abuse Defendant Pending Final Order on Civil Commitment

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.

Crime Alerts: March 11-12

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.