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Defendant’s friend testifies about events leading up to 15-year-old’s murder

During the prosecution’s last day of arguments in 15-year-old Malek Mercer’s murder trial, one of the defendant’s closest friends was called to testify about events leading up to the homicide.

Anthony Ryans, who is currently incarcerated in Prince William County for robbery, testified to what he, Derryck Decuir and another friend did before and after the alleged shooting on the night of June 15, 2015. Mercer died in the hospital four days later. Decuir is being charged with second-degree murder while armed. The friend and Ryans are not being charged with the homicide.

According to Ryans, the three were leaving a ceremony for Decuir’s father who passed a few days before the homicide. He said the mood was somber and he tried to lighten it up with a few jokes. While at the bus stop, Ryans said he joked about Decuir, 25, admiring a red Versace belt that Mercer was wearing. “Why you lookin’ at that man’s a**,” Ryans said. He said Decuir may have giggled at the comment, but it wasn’t serious. According to the prosecution, the comment’s homosexual implication is a possible motive.

The three men exited the bus on the corner of 28th Street SE and Naylor Road SE to go to a 7-Eleven. Ryans said he suffered from Hypoglycemia or cotton mouth, which was exacerbated by the alcohol he drank at the ceremony, and needed a sugary drink. The stop was apparently 20 minutes away from Ryans, Decuir and the friend’s residences.

“How the f*** did he get on the ground,” Ryans said he was thinking when he heard the shot and saw Mercer on the ground. He said the boy with Mercer took off running, so he knew that kid didn’t pull the trigger.

As he was looking around, Ryans said he saw Decuir zipping up his backpack and walk towards him. Ryans said Decuir was silent after the shooting and their friend walked with his head down shaking it from side to side. According to Ryans, Decuir usually carried a backpack filled with clothes and other personal items. Ryans said he did not see Decuir or their friend with a gun before or after the shooting.

Ryans said he proceeded home after the shooting, leaving Mercer on the ground. “I couldn’t save him and I was scared,” he said while crying on the stand. Ryans, Decuir and their friend did not call 911.

On June 16, 2015, Ryans called the police to turn himself in because he was on parole and wearing a GPS tracking device. He said he knew the police would eventually connect him to the homicide. Decuir was arrested on June 19, 2015.

The defense questioned Ryans recollection of the events, since he admitted he was drunk. Ryans said he had been drinking since he was 14 and was coherent.

During redirect, the prosecution played the full audio version of a rapping session between Decuir, Ryans and the friend, which was recorded hours before the shooting. The video shows Decuir rapping about the murder weapon, a pistol with an extended clip. Ryans said the session wasn’t referencing anything specific, the men were just saying things.

The defense is expected to present their evidence on March 8.

Defense requests more time to review discovery files in 2017 homicide

Editors Note: The defendant in this case has since been acquitted on all counts. 

The defense in a 2017 homicide case requested more time to review discovery files and contemplate plea offers at a felony status conference March 6.

DeWayne Shorter Jr.‘s attorney, Jon Norris, asked to postpone scheduling a trial date until the defense is able to fully develop their case.

Shorter, 28, allegedly shot 38-year-old Daniel Shelton Parker on July 26, 2017, on the 2000 block of Fairlawn Avenue, SE. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

The prosecution said they were planning to turn over new discovery files in addition to witness information they gave to the defense March 5.

Judge Ronna Beck scheduled a felony status conference for May 18.

Jury deliberations for 2015 homicide trial begins

On March 6, prosecution and defense teams delivered closing arguments for the murder trial for Dominique Williams.

Williams, 24, is charged with first-degree murder in the alleged drive-by shooting of Marcellus Green on the 3200 block of 28th Street, SE on Sept. 19, 2015. Green, 39, was not the intended target. Maricco Knight, 22, another suspect in the shooting, is charged with accessory after the fact to an assault with the intent to kill, soliciting murder, obstruction of justice and accessory after the fact to murder. Steven Pugh, 22, a third party involved in the shooting, took a plea deal. He has not been sentenced.

“Murder is more than a legal concept,” prosecuting attorney Michael Liebman said. “It lives, breathes and is sitting right here in this room.”

Leibman said Williams was guilty due to the fact that he ran from the car after it crashed. Williams’ DNA was found on a styrofoam cup in the back of a 2008 Honda, which was Pugh’s girlfriend’s car. Williams also told Pugh’s girlfriend about the shooting in a voicemail message.

The prosecution said Williams could still be convicted due to testimony from an IHOPmanager, who overheard him bragging about the shooting.

During the defense’s closing argument, the credibility of Pugh was questioned because he testified to lying during an interview with the Metropolitan Police Department and during the grand jury trial.

Counsel delivers closing arguments in 2015 murder trial

The jury for a three-week homicide trial began deliberations March 5 after counsel delivered their closing arguments on the fatal shooting of 38-year-old Marcus Manor.

The prosecution argued that Kevin Chase and his friend, Demetrius Brandon, both 30, premeditated the murder of Manor on Oct. 20, 2015. Manor was Chase’s sister’s boyfriend.

According to Assistant United States Attorney Adrienne Dedjinou, video footage obtained by the Metropolitan Police Department suggests Brandon not only picked Chase up after the shooting, but also gave him a gun. The prosecution said Brandon and Chase spoke six times on the morning of the murder, which gave them enough time to plan the shooting.

Additionally, the prosecution referenced a text message where Chase asked his mother, about a month before the homicide, if she wanted him to shoot Manor. Apparently, Manor and Chase’s sister had a violent relationship.

The prosecution also said eyewitnesses saw Chase running down the street and getting into Brandon’s car by a nearby gas station before the two ran a red light and sped off. Dedjinou said Chase disposed of the gun in a sewer and stayed with a friend for a few days, which shows consciousness of guilt.

The defense told a vastly different story. According to the defense, Chase acted solely in self-defense and Brandon did not know anything about the shooting.

The defense said Chase’s fears about Manor were validated from witnesses who testified about Manor’s violent past. According to the defense, Manor threatened to kill Chase, which prompted him to shoot when he saw Manor reach for an object, which, at the time, Chase believed was a gun. Manor was not armed.

The defense said that short phone calls between Brandon and Chase did not give them enough time to plan a murder. The defense also said that it wouldn’t make sense to premeditate a murder in public during the day.

Chase is charged with first-degree murder, assault with significant bodily injury, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm and carrying a pistol without a license. Brandon is charged first-degree murder, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and accessory after the fact in an assault with the intent to kill while armed.

The jury began their deliberations on March 6.

Defense argues against introduction of DNA testing in 2015 murder trial

The defense for a man who allegedly fatally stabbed 32-year-old Tyrone Moore argued March 6 against the introduction of DNA testing because the results were inconclusive.

The prosecution announced March 5 that they tested DNA on a piece of metal from a clip that Harold Marshall, 40, allegedly kept his knife attached to. The prosecution said it wanted to present a gene chart as evidence to show the jury that they conducted their investigation properly.

Moore was pronounced dead at a local hospital on March 22, 2015, after being stabbed on the 1600 block of F Street, NE.

Judge Ronna Beck ruled that the prosecution couldn’t introduce the chart, but counsel could write a stipulation, which is an undisputed fact that both parties agree on, saying the DNA testing was inconclusive.

The defense said Marshall, who has been charged with first-degree murder while armed, is eager to move forward with the trial.

A jury is expected to be selected on March 6.

Eyewitness IDs Knight as shooter in 2015 homicide

A lead detective, in a 2015 homicide case, testified March 5 on behalf of an eyewitness who identified Maricco Knight as the shooter.

The detective said the eyewitness, who was Marcellus Green‘s neighbor, said “that’s him, that’s him,” when he saw Knight, 22. Green, 39 was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting on the 3200 block of 28th Street, SE on Sept. 19, 2015. He was not the intended target.

However, the detective said Knight was released since his long dreadlocks did not match up with descriptions other witnesses gave of the shooter. According to other witnesses, the shooter had short hair.

Williams is charged with first-degree murder while armed among other charges, including possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, assault with the intent to kill while armed and carrying a pistol without a license. Knight is charged with accessory after the fact to an assault with the intent to kill, soliciting murder, obstruction of justice and accessory after the fact to murder. The third man involved in the homicide, Steven Pugh, 22, took a plea deal. He has not been sentenced.

A key witness in a murder retrial undercuts her own previous testimony

As the prosecution questioned the ex-girlfriend of Derryck Decuir, who is currently being retried for allegedly fatally shooting 15-year-old Malek Mercer on the night of June 15, 2015, she changed her responses from the testimony she gave at the first trial.

The ex-girlfriend,was called to decode phrases such as “jerseys” for guns and “toenail shells” for bullets, that Decuir used in text messages. Prosecutors say Decuir used those phrases in an effort to get a third person to remove illegal guns, possibly including the murder weapon, from Decuir’s stepmother’s home.

When asked about her change in testimony, the ex-girlfriend admitted that she was only testifying because the prosecution subpoenaed her. She was also overheard telling Decuir, the father of her daughter, that that she was still in love with him. The girlfriend also blew kisses to Decuir while she was on the stand.

In addition to Decuir’s ex-girlfriend, the prosecution called Waverly Schuler, the person who received the coded messages and was both Decuir’s friend and neighbor.

Schuler told the jury that he moved the guns from Decuir’s stepmother’s house and put them in the woods in front of Decuir’s house. Schuler is currently serving a 30-month sentence in D.C. Jail for an unrelated assault with a deadly weapon conviction. He was also convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice in the Mercer homicide, but has yet to be sentenced. He said he agreed to testify before the jury to hopefully get a lighter sentence from the judge for that charge.

The prosecution also called a woman who was among those with Mercer the night he was killed. The defense has claimed that Decuir shot Mercer in self-defense because Mercer had a shotgun. This witness recalled seeing Mercer put a shotgun with duct tape around it in a duffle bag. She is the only person, of six people to remember seeing Mercer with a shotgun.

2017 murder case will not have DNA testing

Both the defense and prosecution decided March 2 that DNA testing was not needed for a murder case.

Herman Lee Cook was arrested and charged with second-degree murder while armed for alledgedly fatally shooting 45-year-old Donald Stephen Johnson Jr. on Feb. 21, 2017.

According to the Metropolitan Police Department, officers found Johnson on the 5700 block of Georgia Ave., NW suffering from gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

Cook, 46, is currently being held without bail. A trial readiness hearing is scheduled on Oct. 12.

Murder suspect’s DNA found inside vehicle used in shooting

A DNA analyst confirmed the presence of Dominique Williams‘ DNA on a styrofoam cup inside a vehicle involved in a drive-by shooting that resulted in the death of Marcellus Green.

The defense previously argued that Williams’ DNA was placed on the cup. However, according to the expert witness, the DNA taken from the cup was double the amount compared to DNA taken from the car’s driving controls or airbags. Williams, 24, managed to get away from the police after a car chase even though the car crashed.

Williams allegedly shot and killed Green, 39, on the 3200 block of 28th Street, SE on Sept. 19, 2015. He is charged with first-degree murder while armed. The two other men involved with the shooting are Maricco Knight, 22, who is charged with accessory after the fact to an assault with the intent to kill and accessory after the fact to murder, and Steven Pugh, 22, who took a plea deal for the homicide.

Judge Judith Bartnoff said she expects the trial to wrap up early next week. The trial began arguments on Feb. 13. The defense is not expected to call any witnesses.

Counsel argues if Marcus Manor’s death was premeditated

The prosecution in a 2015 murder trial suggested that Kevin Chase planned on killing 38-year-old Marcus Manor.

On March 1, the prosecution cross-examined Chase, 30, showing text messages between the defendant and his mother about a month before he fatally shot Manor on on the 2900 block of Sherman Avenue, NW on Oct. 20, 2015. Chase’s mother sent texts to Chase asking if she should buy a new lock for his sister, who was allegedly in a rocky romantic relationship with Manor. “Want me to shoot him?” Chase replied.

According to Chase’s sister, Manor threatened her and her children and stole her son’s house key before she kicked him out of her apartment on Oct. 15, 2015.

The following day, Manor returned to the apartment, and Chase and his cousin broke Manor’s cheekbones and nose.

“You know I’ve been wanting to f*** his ass up,” Chase told a girlfriend over text messages. He also sent friends a picture of Manor, who was bloodied and laying facedown on the floor. Chase is charged with first-degree murder, assault with significant bodily injury, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm and carrying a pistol without a license.

Assistant United States Attorney Adrienne Dedjinou questioned Chase on the role Demetrius Brandon played in Manor’s murder. Chase said he made plans to hang out with Brandon, but Manor, who was sitting outside of Chase’s sister’s apartment, called him over when Brandon arrived. Chase said he told Manor to leave his sister alone, but Manor became angry. Chase said he shot Manor five times because he seemed to be reaching for a gun. Brandon’s lawyer claims that Brandon did not have any knowledge of the shooting beforehand.

Surveillance videos captured Chase running down the street and being picked up by Brandon by a gas station. Brandon has also been charged with first-degree murder. In addition, Brandon is charged with possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and accessory after the fact in an assault with the intent to kill while armed.

One of Manor’s ex-girlfriends was also called by the defense to establish that Manor was often violent. The girlfriend referenced instances of abuse, such as when Manor fired a gun at her from a wooded area near her home, threw her dog off a balcony and threatened to “blow her brains out” in front of her children.

The trial is expected to resume on March 5.