Prosecutor Derides ‘Ludicrous’ Claims a Murder Witness Is the Killer

By Jai Bajaj [former] - December 6, 2023
Daily Stories | Homicides | stabbing | Suspects | Victims |

On Dec. 5, a defense attorney accused an eyewitness of murder during closing statements in a trial before DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt.

Marquette Jordan, 32, is charged with second-degree murder while armed, assault, and carrying a dangerous weapon outside of a home or business with a prior felony, for his alleged connection to the fatal stabbing of 40-year-old Ivan Lynch on April 30, 2018 at the 900 block of Fifth Street, SE.

“B***h I’ll kill you next,”prosecutors said to begin their closing arguments, “That’s what [Jordan] said to [the witness] after he killed Lynch.”

Prosecutors allege Jordan stabbed Lynch after he tried to stop him from assaulting the witness, who is Jordan’s former partner. They said, “In return for standing up for [the witness], Jordan stabbed Lynch with a butcher knife.” 

Prosecutors claimed, “the evidence before you tells you what happened, that Jordan killed Lynch.” 

Prosecutors alleged that, on the day of the murder,  Lynch and his friend went to a barbeque for Lynch’s birthday. They then went back to his friend’s mother’s apartment, and on the way stopped to pick up Jordan’s former partner, her children, Jordan and Jordan’s friend. 

According to prosecutors, an argument broke out between Jordan and Lynch on the drive over. Once at the apartment, Jordan became very angry berating his former girlfriend and threatening to hurt her.

That’s when Lynch stepped in and a fight broke out between the two which, led to Lynch’s fatal stabbing. The events were corroborated by three eyewitnesses who were in the apartment when the murder took place.

Prosecutors referenced the ex-partner’s testimony saying the murder led to her “running out of the apartment with no shoes and couch cushion,” which she claimed she used to protect herself from Jordan. 

Prosecutors explained that, “if they wanted to lie, they would lie about everything.” They told the jury, “[the witnesses] are just telling you what they saw.”

Prosecutors then showed body cam footage from Jordan’s arrest on the night of the murder.

Jordan is seen saying, “I didn’t stab nobody,” and “he tried to hurt my girlfriend, when the knife dropped I picked it up.” Prosecutors said at that point “nobody had accused him of stabbing anyone,” and that Jordan “admits to possessing the knife.”

They finished saying, “That night in the apartment Jordan left a message,” and “it’s time for you to send a message to Jordan, we ask that you find him guilty on all charges.”

Jordan’s defense attorney, Michael Bruckheim, rebutted saying, “[the prosecutors] have failed to provide sufficient evidence to convict in this trial.”

Bruckheim centered his argument around the two witnesses who identified Jordan as the killer. 

He picked apart the testimony by Jordan’s ex-partner saying the story she gave “makes no logical sense whatsoever.”

The witness said she was so scared for her safety she ran out, leaving her children in the apartment. Bruckheim said, “You don’t leave your kids behind with a killer.” He also questioned how long it took her to return to the apartment to find her children, she said she fell asleep under a car returning later in the morning.

Bruckheim disputed testimony from another witness who was present when the stabbing took place and called police ten minutes after the killing. Bruckheim claimed that during those ten minutes, “he was cleaning up the crime scene” to cover for Jordan’s ex-partner.

He said, “both of them offer these ridiculous stories.” Bruckheim argued during the scuffle the ex-partner was the one who stabbed Lynch. He argued that, contrary to the story the witnesses told, Lynch was grabbing Jordan from behind during and the ex-partner attacked him.

Bruckheim claimed that the witnesses conspired against Jordan and had ample time to hide any evidence before police arrived. He mentioned that the knife was never recovered, claiming that one of the witnesses hid or disposed of it.

When Jordan was arrested that night, he was found outside the apartment building with his ex-partners’ two young children. Bruckheim said, “If he killed someone why would he take the kids for a walk around the building?”

In their rebuttal, prosecutors argued that the ex-partner was in “fight or flight,” mode and she was “abused, assaulted and the witness to a homicide.”

According to prosecutors, “there is zero evidence that the ex-partner was the killer in this case,” that it is, “ludicrous, absurd speculation.” 

Prosecutors argued that if the witness were to cover up the crime he would have actually cleaned the apartment.

When police arrived, there were still blood and paper towels on the floor. They explained the delay before police were called saying, “[The witness] can’t call 911 because the murderer is still in the apartment.”

Prosecutors closed their rebuttal saying, “Lynch died on his birthday because Jordan killed him, you decide this case.”

Deliberations are underway.