When Latorya Lisenby went to D.C. Superior Court in August for the preliminary hearing of man accused of killing Mikey Ledbetter, her friend and former romantic interest, she sought peace.
But when the judge in the case didn’t find probable cause and the case was dismissed without charges being pressed, her relief turned to frustration.
“What do you mean it’s dismissed, you mean you aren’t going to charge him with anything?” Lisenby remembers thinking.
Among the 81 cases closed by Metropolitan Police Department detectives in 2013, eight, including Ledbetter’s, were dismissed without prosecution. Read more
After achieving a milestone in 2012 with less than 100 homicide victims in a year, the District of Columbia will see an increase in the number of murders in 2013. On Dec. 9, police chief Cathy Lanier sat down with Homicide Watch D.C. reporters Megan Arellano and Clara Pak to speak about homicides in 2013.
Looking back on the year, Lanier attributed this year’s increase in homicides to the September mass shooting at the Navy Yard:
When you look at year to year calculations of shootings, homicides, things of that nature, you obviously are comparing year to year equally amongst what types of crimes you’re looking at. We didn’t have a mass shooting like Navy Yard in our history to compare that to. That mass shooting, that’s 12 people that were murdered in one instance, 12 people murdered in less than 20 minutes. So that is what had the biggest impact on our numbers. If you look at homicides with the exclusion of the Washington Navy Yard, we’re right about where we were last year. It’ll fluctuate throughout the year, all the way to the end of the year, but we’re right about where we were.
Though the number of homicide victims rose, Lanier said she still saw progress in the journey to lower homicides. In the segment below, Lanier explains how figures other than the number of victims that indicate D.C. is moving forward.
Disrupting gang violence to reduce homicide remains a tactical priority to Lanier. After more than five years of intervention with gang members, Lanier says that gang violence is lessening in DC. Read more
Michael Davis, 24, was killed in a shooting Sunday, December 22. Davis was one of two men found shot shortly after 4 a.m. in the 1300 block of Saratoga Avenue, Northeast. The other man had non-life threatening injuries, police said.
Roger St John was arrested on suspicion of first-degree felony murder in connection with the shooting death of Maryland man Rhett Gelb. Police say the shooting in Northwest DC was a robbery attempt which occurred when Gelb attempted to purchase $500 worth of marijuana. St John appeared in DC Superior Court Wednesday. He was ordered held pending a preliminary hearing set for January 14.
Paul Jefferies, a 20-year-old DC man was arrested in connection with the September beating death of Awele Olisemeka, 24, near the Emory Recreation Center. Police say the beating happened after two groups of young men tussled with each other, one group trying to rob the other one. Olisemeka was found unconscious, holding a broken piece of baseball bat, at 4:40 in the afternoon on Monday, September 16.
We looked back at 2013 with the launch of Homicide Watch DC’s Year in Review this week. Features include an interview with MPD Chief Cathy Lanier, a look at the ten cases that captured our attention this year, guest columns from Councilmember Jim Graham and Kia Dupree Joppy, sister of community activist Timothy Dawkins, the year in numbers, and more. Interviews with US Attorney Ronald Machen, and a look at the year’s dismissed cases are among the stories to look for in this special report next week. Read the 2013 Year in Review here.
The beating death of a 24-year-old DC man last fall happened after two groups of young men tussled with each other, one group trying to rob the other one, police say.
The victim, Awele Olisemeka, was found unconscious, holding a broken piece of baseball bat, near the Emory Recreation Center in Northwest DC at 4:40 in the afternoon on Monday, September 16.
According to charging documents in the case, friends of Olisemeka’s were walking to meet him in Northwest DC when a group of young men assaulted and tried to rob them. Later, when some of those friends spotted their alleged assailants, a fight broke out and Olisemeka was killed.
Police say 20-year-old Paul Jefferies was in that group and this week charged him with second-degree murder in connection with the case. Read more
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 D.C.’s database, unless otherwise noted. For more detailed information, use the sorting features on ourvictims and suspects databases or explore our map.
In 2013, 105 people were killed in 92 separate incidents.
The single most deadly incident, a mass shooting at Washington Navy Yard, claimed 12 victims. The suspect in that shooting, Aaron Alexis, took his own life.
The most common ages for victims were 22 and 24 (seven victims each). Almost two-thirds were in their 20s (43 victims) or 30s (35 victims) when they died. Read more
As we close out 2013 we once again give thanks to Laura and Chris Amico and the Homicide Watch Team of volunteers. Your work reminds all of us of the spirit of community service and ways in which each one of us can contribute to improving quality of life — and in particular — public safety.
Each year I receive scores and scores of emails and phone calls from Ward One constituents concerning neighborhood safety. There is no more important constituent service than neighborhood safety.
Ward One is safer today than it was fifteen years ago — five years ago — even last year. There is no doubt we are safer due to the daily attention we receive from MPD Chief Cathy Lanier, Third District Commander Jacob Kishter, Fourth District Commander Kimberly Missouri, and our 3D and 4D MPD officers. Read more
A 20-year-old Northwest DC man has been arrested in connection with the beating death of Awele Olisemeka, who died September 16, two days after being found unconscious.
The suspect, identified by police as Paul Jefferies, is expected to be charged with second-degree murder while armed. Police say he was arrested Thursday.
A press release from MPD is after the jump. Read more
For many homicides, MPD releases a public poster with information about the crime and rewards for information leading to arrests. The collection of 2013 posters is below.
After five years, Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier says that her strategy to reduce murders in Washington D.C. is on the right track, despite an increase in the number of homicides during 2013 compared to the total for 2012. That increase can largely be attributed to this year’s mass shooting at Washington Navy Yard in September when 12 people lost their lives, Lanier said.
In 2012, the department reached a milestone when they ended the year with 88 (official) homicides, the lowest total since 1963. This year, the District will end the year with more than 100 homicides.
In an interview with Homicide Watch in her office at MPD headquarters, Lanier expressed interest in partnering with public and private organizations to help those at risk of becoming involved in a homicide. After years as a police officer, Lanier has a better understanding of what types of intervention could be helpful, she said. Read more
Homicide Watch is devoted to bringing you the most up-to-date news on DC homicides. This includes: court proceedings, reporting new crimes, arrests, etc. Now that 2013 is coming to a close, let’s take a look back on the ten cases that captured our attention 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. Read more
Homicide Watch is a community-driven reporting project covering every murder in the District of Columbia. Using original reporting, court documents, social media, and the help of victims’ and suspects’ friends, family, neighbors and others, we cover every homicide from crime to conviction. Read more…
