Trial Rescheduled for Re-Opened Murder Case

By Cassandra Kitchen [former] - February 9, 2022
Appeal | Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | Victims |

A DC Superior Court judge rescheduled a trial for a re-opened murder case at the prosecution’s request.

It was September 2015 when Stanley Moghalu was first charged with murder in connection with the 2011 fatal shooting of 27-year-old Ronald Smith, who was a government witness in an investigation into a 2011 homicide. Moghalu, 34, was convicted by a jury of 11 charges including first-degree murder while armed with aggravating circumstances and sentenced to 75-and-a-half years in prison.

After winning his appeal, Moghalu was scheduled to go on trial again in January 2023. However, during a Feb. 7 hearing, the trial was pushed to begin in March instead.

Defense attorney Johnathan Zucker took issue with the prosecution’s postponement request, saying his client has a right to a speedy trial and has been held for approximately seven years since he first picked up the case. Judge Robert Okun recognized this frustration but still agreed to the postponement due to the unavailability of a vital member on the side of the prosecution.

In preparation for the trial, any motions and expert notice are due by Oct. 3 with responses due on Oct. 5. 

The next status hearing for this case is scheduled for May 12.

Moghalu was granted a new trial due to the court’s requirement the first time around that his counsel discloses their defense strategy of trying to demonstrate that another person commit the alleged crimes – also known as a Third-Party Perpetrator (TPP) defense – to the prosecution ahead of trial, D.C. Witness previously reported.