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By
Allyson Nelles
- March 19, 2025
Court
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Daily Stories
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Homicides
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A six co-defendant homicide case from 2021 has been further delayed because of new pre-trial defense motions including a request to end to a forced separation policy at the DC Jail.
William Johnson-Lee, 22, Erwin Dubose, 30, Kamar Queen, 27, and Damonta Thompson, 28, are charged with conspiracy, two counts of premeditated first-degree murder while armed with aggravating circumstances, two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed, and three counts of assault with significant bodily injury while armed, for their alleged involvement in the mass shooting that claimed the lives of 31-year-old Donnetta Dyson, 24-year-old Keenan Baxter, and 37-year-old Johnny Joyner.
Dubose, Queen, and Johnson-Lee each have nine additional counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. Queen and Thompson each gave one additional count of first-degree murder while armed with aggravating circumstances, and Johnson-lee has two more counts of the same charge. Dubose, Queen, and Thompson also each have an additional charge of one or more counts of assault with intent to kill while armed.
Dubose and Queen are each charged with unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction, as well. Dubose has additional charges of premeditated first-degree murder while armed and tampering with physical evidence. Finally, Queen and Johnson-Lee each have an additional charge of carrying a pistol without a license outside a home or business.
The incident occurred on the 600 block of Longfellow Street, NW on Sept. 4, 2021, and left three others suffering from injuries.
Toyia Johnson, 52, and Mussay Rezene, 32, are charged with accessory after the fact while armed and tampering with physical evidence for their alleged involvement in assisting the other defendants in getting rid of the evidence and avoiding getting caught in connection with the case.
Queen and Dubose’s attorneys filed motions to suppress data pulled from their Instagram accounts. They filed these motions after the deadline, however, Judge Kravitz was willing to consider them in light of “good cause.”
Kravitz emphasized the point of judicial efficiency, reasoning that denying the motions may not be the most expedient approach and could result in a constitutional issue based on ineffective assistance of counsel, an eventual appeal, or even a retrial.
The prosecution has until March 21 to file oppositions, and the defense has until March 23 to respond.
Additionally, defendants Queen and Rezene spoke to the difficult living conditions they are experiencing in the DC Jail due to the defendants’ separation order. Queen mentioned that the separation in the highly confined environment is a strain on their quality of life, mental health, and sleep schedule. They asked Judge Kravitz to lift the order.
Kravitz told the defendants that it’s up to the prosecution to lift the restrictions that they had originally imposed. Legally, the prosecution is not required to disclose the separations’ rationale.
“This courtroom is your turf, your honor,” stated Charles Murdter, Thompson’s defense attorney. Murdter emphasized that the court has jurisdiction in this matter and others that affect the defendants.
Michael Bruckheim, Dubose’s attorney, mentioned that the prosecution issued the separation order, which theoretically opens the doors to litigation on the matter. If the DC Jail imposed the separation, then it would not be a court matter.
Kravitz reasoned that the prosecution likely issued the separation order in good faith, and encouraged the prosecution to review the issue and consider if any of the reasons for the separation could be shared in court.
Kravitz then ordered Queen and Dubose’s attorneys to have the specifics of their motions to suppress Instagram evidence and everything derived from the Instagram warrant completely laid out by the end of the day on March 19.
Parties are scheduled to reconvene on March 24 to review the motions.