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By
D.C. Witness Staff
- September 19, 2019
Court
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During a murder trial Sept. 18, a victim’s seven-year-old sister testified about what she saw the night of the murder.
James Embre is charged with felony murder, first-degree cruelty to children and second-degree cruelty to children for his alleged role in the death of two-year-old Aceyson Aizim Ahmad on the 3400 block of A Street, SE on April 17. According to court documents, Embre, 26, was involved in a romantic relationship with Aceyson’s mother.
Aceyson’s sister said Embre never hit the baby on the night of the murder.
“Aceyson kept falling off the bed,” the sister said. She also said Embre would pick him back up and put him on the bed like he was “stressed out.”
When the prosecution asked why she thought Embre was stressed out, she replied, “I don’t know, I think it was because Aceyson kept falling out of the bed.”
Aceyson’s sister also said she thought her brother was just sleeping because his eyes were not open. She said she witnessed Aceyson throw up on the bed at some point during the night.
The sister said “nobody hit Aceyson” when questioned about other possible perpetrators.
D.C. Witness previously reported that defense counsel, Johnathan Zucker, said that both the sister and the boy’s mother had been violent towards the baby in the past.
The prosecution also showed the girl a video of her telling her mom that Embre punched Aceyson that night while the two sat in a police cruiser. “James didn’t whoop him,” the girl told the prosecution again. She said the only reason she told her mom Embre did it was so she would not “freak out” in the police car.
However, after a short break, the sister changed her story, saying Embre punched Aceyson in the back one time.
A forensic pathologist, who performed the autopsy on the boy’s body, told the jury about several marks and physical injuries found on the child. According to medical reports and the examiner’s testimony, there were multiple abrasions and contusions on Aceyson’s forehead, all over his chest, his sides, his abdomen, and on both hands. He also had fractured ribs.
The ribs showed four different stages of healing, meaning the child had been hit multiple times on multiple occasions before the night of the homicide, the medical examiner said.
The sister and the pathologist are scheduled to continue their testimonies on Sept. 19.