Preliminary Hearing Interrupted in Murder Case

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On Oct. 4, a homicide preliminary hearing was interrupted due to scheduling issues.

Jaleil Jones, 18, is charged with first-degree murder while armed for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 44-year-old Robert Lavender that occurred on July 17 on the 600 block of Monroe Street, NE.

The prosecution called a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective who identified the defendant in court as the suspect. He also testified the killing lasted for approximately 30 seconds to one minute. During the assault the victim was apparently trying to shield himself.

The prosecution introduced footage from 23 surveillance videos showing two individuals walking from an apartment building to the location of the murder. The MPD detective testified that one of the individuals in the videos was Jones.

According to the detective, minutes before the murder, Lavender was seen with a body bag. Surveillance video then displays a person the detective identified as Jones and another individual running away from the murder scene with what appears to be a body bag.

An individual then appears to be stumbling into the video frame which the detective identified as Lavender.

Due to scheduling issues, DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt stopped the hearing and it is scheduled to resume on Oct. 11.