Steven Kiersh Archives - D.C. Witness

Judge Rules Against Admitting Gang-Tie Evidence in a Homicide Case

Details DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan granted a defense motion to exclude the prosecution’s Instagram evidence suggesting the suspects had a gang association. The action in a Nov. 14 hearing... Read More

Evidence of Gang Affiliation Hangs on Judge’s Ruling in a Homicide

Details DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan delayed her ruling on a motion to allow the prosecution to present evidence connecting a murder defendant to a gang during a hearing on... Read More

Judge Allows Limited Evidence of Gang Affiliation in Murder Trial

By Elizabeth Bernstein , Lauren Andreala - November 4, 2024
Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects | Victims |

Details DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan granted a motion allowing the prosecution to provide evidence that a murder defendant is affiliated with a gang and that the shooting was linked... Read More

Shooting Defendant Waives Preliminary Hearing, Released With Stay Away Order

By Elizabeth Brady - October 10, 2024
Daily Stories | Data | Non-Fatal Shooting | Shooting |

Details A shooting defendant waived his right to a preliminary hearing, and DC Superior Court Judge Anthony Epstein granted the suspect’s request for his release on Oct. 9. Demetry Ferguson, 30,... Read More

Murder Defendant May Not Want to Represent Himself

Details A homicide defendant alerted the court that he may be reconsidering his request to represent himself before DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan on Oct. 9. Wonell Jones Jr., 37,... Read More

Murder Co-Defendant’s Request to Sever Denied

Details DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan in a hearing on Sept. 20. denied Tony Morgan’s request to sever his case from his co- defendant Martinez Raynor prior to a trial... Read More

‘I Didn’t Have Nothing to Do With This,’ Says Co-Defendant at Sentencing Hearing

Details DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan sentenced two homicide co-defendants to 50 and 61 years of imprisonment for the 2017 fatal shooting of a teenage girl on Sept. 6. Robert... Read More

Homicide Defendant Pleads Not Guilty

Details During a June 13 hearing, homicide defendant Dohn Harmon pleaded not guilty before D.C. Superior Court Judge Michael O’Keefe. Harmon, 24, is charged with first-degree murder, a drive-by or random... Read More

Trial Date Proposed To Change In Murder Case

Details During April 11 court proceedings DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan postponed the rescheduling a trial date. Martinez Raynor, 23, and Tony Morgan, 29, are being held for allegedly shooting Malik... Read More

Judge Schedules Next Hearing for Homicide Case Due to Loss of Witnesses

Details During a status hearing on Jan. 23, DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt scheduled the next status hearing of a homicide case to give more time for the defense to... Read More

Parties Deliver Closing Arguments in Co-Defendant Homicide Trial

Details During a Nov. 29 jury trial, two parties delivered closing arguments and the judge reversed her previous ruling on a motion in a 2017 murder case. On Aug. 10, 2017,... Read More

Defendant’s Baby Mama Takes Stand in Murder Trial

Details On Nov. 17, two eyewitnesses testified about a shooting and subsequent arrest in a 2017 co-defendant murder trial. James Mayfield, 23, and Robert Moses, 23, are charged with first-degree murder... Read More