Video of shooting sparks argument in courtroom; judge releases defendant the next day

By Alishba Kamran
– 16 September 2024
Daily Stories | Murders | Shootings | Suspects | Victims |

Washington, DC Supreme Court Justice Maribeth Raffinan called a recess after an argument broke out in the courtroom on September 10 between a relative of a murder victim and a defendant. She found that there was sufficient evidence to prove that the defendant was the perpetrator of the September 11 attacks.

Karim Ibrahim, 21, is charged with second-degree armed murder for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Javonni Coleman. The incident occurred Jan. 16 in the 2400 block of S Street, SE.

According to court documents, Coleman suffered fatal injuries to his head, neck and upper body.

Prosecutors called a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer who testified that their investigation into the murder identified Ibrahim as the shooter. According to the officer, surveillance footage, witness statements and phone records played a key role in identifying the shooter.

According to court documents, one of the witnesses was asked if there were any problems between Coleman and other people. The witness stated in an interview with MPD that it was possible that Coleman may have had problems with certain individuals, but they were not sure.

He testified that Ibrahim's clothing “was the same as that seen in videos recorded 16 hours earlier and posted on social media. Several videos from Ibrahim's social media and Gmail accounts were recovered that appeared to show weapons similar to those used during the murder, as well as the clothing items in question.

Kevin Mosley, Ibrahim's attorney, argued that the officer's memory was speculative and questioned his preparation for his testimony.

Mosley questioned the MPD's knowledge of the timing of the shooting, saying that the building's security camera footage did not have timestamps.

The officer stated, “The timestamps were matched to the actions shown in the video,” to which Mosley replied, “This case was based on everything but facts.”

Mosley argued that Ibrahim's mother was unable to identify the shooter in the footage as her son, saying that a mother would know what her child looked like and that her statements should be given considerable weight.

During the hearing, prosecutors repeatedly showed footage of the murder, which led to a confrontation between Coleman's and Ibrahim's families.

US Marshals dragged Ibrahim and several others out of the courtroom, ending the proceedings.

The next day, Judge Raffinan informed the parties that she had found sufficient evidence of premeditated murder, but decided to release the accused on conditions.

She ordered him to be placed under house arrest and GPS monitoring and imposed a stay-at-home agreement with the victim's family, his residence and any other locations related to the incident.

Among these conditions, Judge Raffinan also required him to stay away from social media, comply with all laws and cooperate with the court.

Coleman's family members present in the courtroom were visibly dismayed by the decision.

There will be a status hearing on September 26.