Parties in Murder Case Nearly Ready for Trial

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Parties in the case of a 1998 homicide told a DC Superior Court judge they are nearly ready to go to trial.

Kenneth Bryant Jr. is charged with first-degree murder while armed in the shooting of 35-year-old James Lane on Aug. 10, 1998, on the 200 block of S Street, NE.

Bryant picked up the charge in 2019. He is currently being held at FCI Bennettsville, a federal prison in South Carolina, on other charges. D.C. Witness could not confirm what those charges are.

According to the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), he has a release date in April 2025. But during the July 21 hearing, defense attorney Ronald Resetartis said his client is set to be released within the next three years.

Parties said scheduling conflicts prevent them from going to trial in January 2023, so Judge Milton Lee scheduled a status hearing for Oct. 22 to discuss the issue.

According to court documents, Bryant was charged with murder in 1989 and then again in 1990, D.C. Witness previously reported. Both cases were dismissed by grand juries. A 1990 case, in which he was charged with assault with intent to kill, met the same fate. He was also charged with armed burglary in 1992, but a jury acquitted him.

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