Witness on Third Day of Testimony Accuses Defense of Antagonizing

Thank you for reading D.C. Witness. Help us continue our mission into 2024.

The prosecution’s witness told defense attorneys they were antagonizing him as he testified in a homicide and conspiracy trial.

Gregory Taylor, 26, Quentin Michals, 25, Qujuan Thomas, 24, Darrise Jeffers, 23, Isaiah Murchison, 22, and Marquell Cobbs, 21, are six of 10 defendants charged with first-degree murder, criminal street gang affiliation, conspiracy, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, assault with intent to kill, and other charges regarding a fatal drive-by shooting that resulted in the death of Makiyah Wilson. The shooting happened on the 300 block of 53rd Street, NE on July 16, 2018.

The witness who testified on March 20 allegedly sold the defendants a vehicle that was used to flee the scene.

Murchison’s defense attorney, Elizabeth Weller, questioned the witness about the interviews he had given when arrested for carjacking in Maryland. According to the witness, in the first two interviews, he refused to provide any information to either Prince George’s County Police Department officers or Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives.

According to the witness, in his third interview, after consulting with his lawyer, he provided a glimpse of some of the information he had regarding the carjacking and selling of a black Infiniti vehicle that was connected to the July 16, 2018 homicide.

According to the witness, a month after he was released in 2018, he was “at the wrong place at the wrong time,” during the carjacking of the vehicle.

After being charged for the carjacking, he accepted a more lenient plea deal for his assistance in the trial.

The witness is currently awaiting sentencing for his involvement in the carjacking, which is to be scheduled after his testimony in this trial.

Trial is slated to resume March 21.

Follow this case