Family, friends and neighborhoods of homicide victims and suspects opened up their hearts and minds on Homicide Watch throughout the year. In their comments were words of grief, wisdom, loss and comfort. They helped all of us better understand the true human impact of violent crime and the humanity present in the most tragic of circumstances.
As 2011 closes we look back on some of the comments of the year.
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Police today announced the arrest of 23-year-old Anthony Speight in the January shooting death of Bill Mitchell near North Capitol Street and Florida Avenue NW.
Speight, who has no fixed address, is being held on suspicion of first degree murder while armed.
A statement from MPD is below:
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A 19-year-old Upper Marlboro, Md. man is suspected of felony murder in connection with the shooting death of Kevin Blackwell Jr.
MPD said the suspect, Harold Proctor, was arrested Tuesday.
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A Northeast DC man was arrested today in connection with the shooting death of Junon Tyree Snead.
Andrew Wesley Williams, 25, is suspected of first-degree murder while armed, MPD said.
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Every day Homicide Watch brings you the most up-to-date news available on DC homicides: reporting on new crimes, arrests, court proceedings and more. Now, as 2011 draws to a close, it’s time to look back on what we’ve learned.
This special 2011 Year in Review package features interviews, investigative reports, charts, roundups and more, all exploring this year in DC homicides. We also look ahead to what’s in store next year, particularly at DC Superior Court where several high profile murder cases are scheduled for trial in the first weeks of the year.
You can find all the special reports included in the package at our special 2011 Year in Review page.
And keep checking back; there’s still more to come.
In a crowded H Street bar one evening this fall, US Attorney Ronald Machen answered question after question about public safety and the pursuit of justice in DC.
The community event was one of dozens he attended throughout the year, part of an intensive campaign to make the prosecution of crimes a community effort. The questions asked of Machen aren’t always easy. And from the back of the bar that night came one of the more difficult ones.
“What can we do about the homicide problem?” asked Merrit Drucker, of the NoMa Business Improvement District.
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Brian Scott in Facebook memorial
The image, which portrays Jesus as black, hangs in Scott’s mother’s living room. Brian Scott became the first DC murder victim in 2011 when he was gunned down in Southeast DC on January 2.
“She says that’s her daddy because he has dread locks in his hair,” Scott’s mother, Bonnie, said of the photo. “Just like Brian.”
Scott was the first of 27 black men and teenagers killed before their 22nd birthdays in Washington, DC, in 2011. From the point of cold, unfeeling statistics, Scott’s murder is indicative of the majority of the 108 violent deaths in DC this year. There were 84 black males killed in D.C. in 2011. Scott is one of the 77 shooting deaths in the city. He is one of 53 cases where police have yet to name a suspect.
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One hundred and eight murder victims. Seventy suspects. From them, these were the cases that captured our hearts and minds this year. This list of ten cases was created based on your suggestions, our observations and an analysis of which stories were most read or most commented on.
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Lloyd Wolf is DC’s most well known photographer of the street memorials left to homicide victims. He records the art of memory and loss on his photography site, Washington’s Other Monuments. In this special report for Homicide Watch’s Year in Review Lloyd talks to reporter Tom LeGro about some of the most memorable memorials this year.
As part of our special Year in Review series, we parse out data related to this year’s homicides. The numbers in this story are pulled from Homicide Watch DC’s database unless otherwise noted. For more detailed information, use the sorting features on our victims and suspects databases or explore our map.
In 2011:
There were 108 murder victims in 105 separate incidents. 3 incidents involved multiple fatalities.
80 percent of the victims were from DC.
14 percent were from Maryland.
6 percent were from an unknown part of DC, had no fixed address, or it was not reported where they were from.
Of those who were DC residents, 40 percent were from Northeast DC, 30 percent were from Northwest DC and 29 percent were from Southeast DC. There were no victims from Southwest DC.
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