Case Acquitted: Witness Testifies the Alleged Shooter Was ‘No Longer in the Courtroom’

By Payton Anderson , Anthoine Godin - January 25, 2024
Daily Stories | Non-Fatal Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

Donnell Tucker was acquitted of all charges on Jan. 31, 2024.

On Jan. 24 prosecutors presented opening statements and several witnesses before DC Superior Court Judge Robert Salerno regarding what they say is a non-fatal “retaliation” shooting.

Donnell Tucker, 27, is charged with conspiracy, first-degree burglary while armed, two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, aggravated assault knowingly while armed, and threat to kidnap or injure a person, for his alleged involvement in a non-fatal shooting that injured one individual on the night of March 28, 2023. The shooting happened on the 3400 block of 13th Place, SE. 

On Nov. 6, 2023, Tucker’s mother, Tiaquana Chandler, 42, who was also charged in connection to the incident, was convicted of conspiracy, and acquitted of first-degree burglary, assault with significant bodily injury while armed, soliciting a violent crime, and additional possession of a firearm during a crime of violence charges. 

The prosecution opened with video footage from the officer’s body cam on the night of the crime. The video depicted the injuries the victim suffered, leading the prosecution to argue the violent nature of the “attack.” 

According to the prosecution, an altercation between Tucker and the victim was allegedly driven by the victim’s treatment of Chandler. 

The prosecution said Chandler and the victim got into a heated argument at a friend’s apartment, prompting Chandler to leave and return with Tucker.  

“This case is all about retaliation,” argued the prosecutors. “A son who was angry about how his mother was being treated.”

The prosecution described how Tucker had “brutally beat and shot” the victim, leaving him with severe head trauma, several broken limbs, and a gunshot wound in his leg.  

“There is only one verdict consistent with this case, which is to find the defendant guilty,” concluded the prosecution. 

Marnitta King, Tucker’s defense attorney, reserved their right to not deliver an opening statement until the prosecution concluded their presentation.

Following their opening statement, the prosecution called a witness, who supposedly had romantic relations with the victim and was present the night of the crime. According to her testimony, she and the victim had been living in a friend’s apartment “a week and three days” before the altercation.  

The witness testified that on the night of the incident, Tucker, Chandler, and the victim were all under the influence of several substances including alcohol and hallucinogenic phencyclidine (PCP). 

The witness recalled that Chandler hit the victim in the heat of their argument, prompting the victim to “remove” Chandler’s wig and call her an “evil devil.”  

The eyewitness testified that, after Chandler repeatedly left and came back to the apartment, Tucker and his mother had finally returned to the apartment together. 

The witness said they, as well as the owner of the apartment, retired to their rooms while the victim went to take out the trash around 10:30 p.m. The eyewitness then heard a knock at the door and looked through the peephole to see that “his[Tucker’s] mother was standing in front of him and he was carrying a gun”. 

When asked for a description of Tucker by the prosecution, the witness remembered Tucker wearing all black clothes with a mask covering all but his face the night of the attack. The witness claims they recognized Tucker’s voice the night of the attack. They had previously met days before the crime. 

According to the witness, Tucker allegedly forced the door of the apartment open to press the witness against the wall and walked over to the victim, exclaiming “I’m gonna kill you right now.” 

The witness then said they watched from the doorway of the apartment as Tucker and Chandler dragged the victim onto the stairs. Once outside the apartment, Chandler allegedly began to hit the victim with her fist which had four rings.

The witness testified that Tucker then fired five shots outside the apartment, at least one of which injured the victim’s leg. The witness then “told them to stop” only to be ignored as Tucker and his mother allegedly fled the scene. 

According to the witness, before leaving the scene Tucker allegedly threatened the witness saying, “You better not tell the police. If you do, I’ll take care of you.”

Early on in their testimony, the witness identified the defendant saying the “person sitting next to the lawyer is the one who shot [the victim] in the leg.” 

However, the witness contradicted her statement by claiming that the individual who shot the victim that night was no longer present in the courtroom. 

“He’s not here [in the courtroom], he’s gone now,” the witness said. 

The prosecution then asked where that person was previously seated in the courtroom, walking three aisles back to where the witness said this person was sitting. The witness described the individual who sat there as “short and slim” with “small eyes,” saying these traits made that person appear more like the man who shot the victim. 

The witness then claimed that the man who shot the victim was “darker” than the person “sitting next to the lawyer.” Yet, the witness still asserted that the person who shot the victim was Chandler’s son. 

The witness claimed she had only seen the individual who shot the victim wearing dark clothes, a mask and a bandana around his head.  

Following the prosecution’s direct examination, Judge Salerno asked the witness how she knew the person who shot the victim was Chandler’s son. 

“From his voice, his dark clothing, and his skin was dark, especially around the eyes,” the witness clarified. 

The witness confirmed through their testimony that, according to them, the person who shot the victim was no longer sitting in the courtroom.  

Due to time constraints, King did not get to cross-examine the witness. 

Cross-examination of the witness as well as additional testimony is slated to resume Jan. 25.