Jurors charged with determining guilt in a neighborhood argument that left one man dead heard opening arguments in the case today.
The defendant, Ellsworth Colbert, 57, is charged with first-degree murder, assault with intent to kill, and three weapons charges in connection with the stabbing death of 38-year-old Robert Wright.
Prosecutors told jurors the crime was a neighborhood dispute over a dog which turned deadly violent. But Colbert’s defense attorney disagreed, arguing to jurors that the man on trial was not the agressor, that he was fighting for his life when he stabbed neighbor Wright.
“This case is not about a dog,” defense attorney James Beane Jr. told jurors.
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Judge Karen Howze ordered Khari Williams held at D.C. Jail Wednesday, a day after police arrested him on suspicion of killing Angelo Payne Dec. 30. Williams is charged with Murder I while armed in connection with Payne’s death.
Payne’s homicide was the District’s last murder of 2012.
Prosecutors say Williams, who turned 18 Wednesday, killed Payne because he believed Payne was responsible for two missing bottles of PCP. Police did not report Williams’ name, saying that he was a juvenile.
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Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial against Ellsworth Colbert.
Because there were not enough jurors to complete the process Tuesday, jury selection is scheduled to continue Wednesday morning in Judge Herbert Dixon’s courtroom.
Colbert, 56, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed, and several weapons charges in connection with the stabbing death of 38-year-old Robert Wright.
Prosecutors say that Colbert, brandishing a walking stick and a knife, argued with Wright the morning of March 4, 2012 and punched Wright in the back of his head in a dispute over Wright’s dog’s “mess.” They say Wright then grabbed a shovel and used it to strike Colbert. An autopsy showed that Wright had been stabbed several times.
In brief:
Two men were killed in separate shootings in Southeast DC last weekend. Darnell Rivers was killed a little before 8 p.m. last Saturday in the 5000 block of Ayers Place SE. Angelo Alphonso Payne was killed hours later, shortly after midnight in the 3400 block of Croffut Place. The two deaths brought DC’s 2012 homicide count to 92.
Judge Herbert Dixon moved forward with Ellsworth Colbert’s trial Wednesday morning, denying a motion to continue the trial and insisting that it go forward as scheduled. The trial is expected to begin Monday.
Malik Shabazz, who legally changed his name from Maurice Yancey, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for the murder of Demetrius Dempsey. Dempsey, 34, died December 13, 2010, more than three years after being beaten in the face with a brick; his death was ruled a homicide in January 2011.
Samuel Nelson pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter while armed in connection with the stabbing death of Darnell Howard. He is scheduled to be sentenced April 5. Howard, 36, died October 2, 2012, after being taken to the hospital with several stab wounds to his body.
Finally, Homicide Watch DC’s Year in Review 2012 is now complete. Catch up on our two-week special report on the year in homicides here.
For two weeks, Homicide Watch has brought you a series of special in-depth and investigative features as part of our annual Year in Review. You can find those reports, including video of our interview with MPD Chief Cathy Lanier, an analysis of our database, a gallery of street shrine photos, comments of the year, and more, here.
It was an historic year for DC: 92 homicides were reported, the fewest in 50 years. Homicide Watch DC certainly wasn’t alone in the year-end reporting on this important milestone.
This links roundup points you to coverage of the homicide year in review from other news organizations. Have we missed a link? Leave it in the comments and we’ll add it to this post.
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Washington’s Other Monuments, which documents street shrines, has photos in memory of three of DC’s recent homicide victims: Selina Brown, Jeffrey Tyson, and Jason Emma.
A sampling of the photos is below. See more at Washington’s Other Monuments.
Crime scene tape marks the spot where Selina Brown was killed.
And where Jeffrey Tyson was killed.
This memorial for Jason Emma was built on C Street NE, where he was killed.
Each week, Homicide Watch brings you a list of upcoming hearings in the cases we follow. All hearings are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. unless otherwise noted. To add an item to the listing, email homicidewatchdc [at] gmail.com. To see scheduled court hearings beyond next week, see our calendar.
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Samuel Nelson pled guilty today to voluntary manslaughter while armed in connection with the stabbing death of Darnell Howard. He is scheduled to be sentenced April 5.
Howard, 36, died October 2, 2012, after being taken to the hospital with several stab wounds to his body.
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Malik Shabazz, who legally changed his name from Maurice Yancey, was sentenced today to 12 years in prison for the murder of Demetrius Dempsey.
Dempsey, 34, died December 13, 2010, more than three years after being beaten in the face with a brick; his death was ruled a homicide in January 2011.
Shabazz was arrested in March 2011 and denied any involvement in the incident, claiming he was out of state at the time. Four days before his scheduled trial date, though, Shabazz pled guilty to one count of voluntary manslaughter in connection with the case; the first-degree murder charge was dismissed.
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For Abigail Dennis, 2012 has left her with a lot of unanswered questions, a sadness she is reminded of every time her 4-year-old son asks for his father.
In June her 60-year-old husband, Hayes Osei Dennis, was stabbed to death on Q Street SW near Nationals Park. Lt. Robert Alder, of the MPD’s Homicide Unit, said Dennis died as a result of a robbery.
The assailant, an unidentified black man, approached Dennis outside of Goldstar Cab Repair, the company where he had worked as a full-time manager and part-time cab driver for about seven years, Alder said.
The perpetrator took $20 from Dennis and attacked him as he turned to walk away. Dennis left behind a wife and seven children between the ages of 4 and 20.
Dennis’s case is one of 44 in 2012 in which no suspects have been arrested. Read more
