Preliminary Homicide Hearing Interrupted

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On Oct. 11, during the second day of a homicide preliminary hearing, the proceeding 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.

On Oct. 4, DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt heard testimony from the Metropolitan Police Department’s (MPD) lead detective for the case.

On Oct. 11, the lead detective continued his testimony regarding his involvement in the on-going investigation into the homicide.

According to the detective and prosecutors, there are various videos that show two individuals, one of which was identified as Jones by witnesses and the MPD, shooting Lavender and fleeing the scene of the crime.

Other videos show the two suspects allegedly leaving the area of the incident. One of the videos shows the suspects dropping some items outside the Brookland-CUA Metro Station. The items were later recovered by MPD, and included bank cards and identification cards that belonged to Lavender.

According to the detective, he was able to access Jones’ Instagram account which was public and noticed several images and videos that portray him holding guns and pointing it to the camera.

In one of the videos, which was played in court, Jones can be seen wearing what appears to be the same hoodie worn by one of the shooters during the murder.

Kevann Gardner, Jones’ defense attorney, argued that the detective couldn’t prove the Instagram account actually belonged to Jones because anyone could have posted the images and videos on the account.

Gardner also questioned the lead detective regarding the various different lookout descriptions shared between MPD and dispatchers on the day of the incident. Many of those descriptions did not match Jones’ description, Gardner states.

Due to time constraints, the detective was unable to finish his testimony.

Parties are expected to return for a continued preliminary hearing on Oct. 17.

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