Witnesses Testify about a Car Crash, Sounds of Gunfire in a Homicide Trial

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The prosecution called the victim of a car crash to testify about his extensively damaged vehicle in a homicide trial before DC Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan on Feb. 25. Prosecutors suggest the accident is linked to the crime.

Jerome Israel, 19, is charged with premeditated first-degree murder while armed, two counts of carrying a pistol without a license, two counts of unauthorized use of a vehicle, unlawful discharge of a firearm, and two counts of destruction of property for his alleged involvement in the death of ChaQuan Barbett, 24, on Aug. 23, 2022. The incident occurred on the 2300 block of Minnesota Ave, SE.

Prosecutors called on an eyewitness who lived at the house bordering the crime scene.

The witness testified that he was watching TV at home when he heard gunshots and saw two men running away from an alley. One of the men fell to the ground, and the other one continued to shoot him while standing over the victim, according to the witness.

The witness stated he ran downstairs to help, but people near a bus stop were already rendering aid and the shooter had fled. The witness then called 911, and an ambulance was flagged down to help. The witness testified that he did not see the face of the shooter, only knew that he was wearing a gray hoodie and pants.

Another witness was a former Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer who arrived at the scene as the victim was being loaded into the ambulance, suffering from apparent gunshot wounds to the lower body and couldn’t provide information about the person who had shot him.

Another MPD officer testified about an incident two days after the murder of Barbett. He testified that on Aug. 25, 2022, as he was on patrol for a separate investigation in the area, he heard gunshots at 5:49 a. m.

The witness and his partner turned into an alley encountering an individual all in black when they saw a black Dodge Charger with a Maryland license plate back towards them.

Later that morning presumably the same black Dodge Charger got into an accident a few minutes away. The vehicle collided with a white Ford pickup truck, and the driver fled the scene.

The prosecution called the driver of the pickup truck to the stand to testify to the accident. He described it by saying that “all of a sudden, it sounded like a bomb went off. The airbags went off. I didn’t know what had happened.”

When he got out of his car when he noticed a gun lying on the ground next to, a black Dodge Charger.

He explained that his truck was no longer drivable, and the insurance company totaled the vehicle.

Parties will reconvene on February 27.