A Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer testified about a homicide defendant’s demeanor when she arrived at the scene in a trial before DC Superior Court Danya Dayson on July 22.
Rayvon Slye, 34, is charged with second-degree murder while armed for his alleged involvement in the fatal stabbing of Andrea Bond, 30. The incident occurred on March 7, 2023, on the 1000 block of D Street, NE. Bond sustained one stab wound to her left upper chest.
The MPD officer testified that she responded for a suspected overdose based on information from Emergency Medical Services (EMS), but later classified the investigation as a homicide.
Prosecutors played footage from the officer’s body-worn camera, and she confirmed that Bond was depicted on the floor. According to the officer, Bond had already succumbed to her injuries when police arrived.
The officer asserted that there were several people at the scene, including Bond’s family members and Slye. The officer identified Slye in court and said that he seemed nervous when the police initially responded. She described his face as “clammy,” and said that he was sweating.
According to the officer, Slye told Bond’s family member that Bond was reportedly stabbed the day prior after an altercation with a woman in the Trinidad neighborhood. Slye claimed that he instructed Bond to call the police, but she refused. He told the officers that he helped her wipe the blood off and bandage her wound before they went to sleep.
The officer said MPD conducted a search of the house through several rooms and looked for signs of blood. According to the officer, blood was not visible on any floors or walls. However, when searching an outdoor trash can, the officer stated she found a shirt stained with suspected blood.
The officer later explained that investigators were not searching for a weapon in the house because, at the time, they did not believe that the stabbing occurred there.
In another officer’s body-worn camera footage, Slye confirmed that the last time he saw Bond alive was the morning of her death. He claimed that, the day before, she reportedly told him that she had suicidal thoughts. He told officers that she took 15 pills, but did not know what kind.
The officer testified that she ordered Slye to stop eating while facing Bond’s body, as it was a homicide investigation.
In cross-examination, Slye’s attorney, Kayla Wyatt, confirmed that Slye was compliant with officers and answered their questions.
Slye was neither placed under arrest nor classified as a suspect while he interacted with the responding officers, according to the officer.
Wyatt highlighted that, although this was a homicide investigation, one family member was permitted to leave the scene to pick up their child. The officer clarified that it was up to MPD to determine who could stay or leave and that not all parts of the house were considered an active crime scene.
Wyatt also pointed out that not everyone in the house could be monitored by police, as there were fewer officers than family members.
Addressing the suspected bloody clothes and washcloth in the trash, Wyatt confirmed with the officer that the trash might have been disposed of shortly before MPD’s arrival.
Upon additional questioning, the officer established it took Slye a long time to provide the location in Trinidad where he reportedly dropped off Bond the day prior. According to the officer, she used a map to help Slye describe the area and he still did not provide a specific location.
Two of Bond’s cousins were also called to the stand as witnesses. Bond had been adopted by their grandmother and raised alongside the brothers despite not having a biological relation.
The older of the two brothers testified that he returned home between 2:30-and-3 a.m. the night before the incident and saw Bond and Slye asleep under blankets on a couch in the living room. The following morning, he reportedly saw Slye leave the house and return with a tray of food. He testified that he did not realize anything was wrong until he later returned to ambulances outside.
The witness also testified that he did not hear any arguing or screaming during the night.
Bond’s other cousin testified that the morning of the incident, he found Bond lying on the couch and described her as “lifeless.” Prosecutors also played a video the witness recorded of paramedics performing CPR on Bond.
Slye’s other attorney, Kevin Mosley, questioned the witness’ omission of certain details during an earlier police interview. The witness responded that he had “offered what [he] remembered,” in light of a traumatic incident.
An analyst with the Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS) also testified about documenting and collecting evidence from the scene. Prosecutors introduced photographs of the residence, clothing with suspected bloodstains, and a green shirt recovered from an outdoor trash can.
Mosley argued that the green shirt was recovered from the trash where it was buried under numerous other items, allegedly including a half-eaten box of chicken. He questioned the decision to not collect other items from the trash, including the washcloth with suspected bloodstains, arguing that substances from those items could have contributed to the suspected bloodstains on the shirt.
The forensic scientist also testified that no visible blood was observed on the walls or floors inside the home.
Parties are scheduled to reconvene to continue the trial on July 23.
