Five gang members from Washington, DC, were convicted of murder, and another was found guilty of conspiracy, in connection to the 2018 killing of a 10-year-old girl.
The incident unfolded on a summer evening as the young girl was enjoying ice cream on the stoop of her home.
Isaiah Murchison, 23, Darrise Jeffers, 23, Qujuan Thomas, 24, Quentin Michals, 25, and Gregory Taylor, 27, were all found guilty of the first-degree murder of 10-year-old Makiyah Wilson by a jury in the DC Superior Court, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
US Attorney Matthew M. Graves stated that the defendants unleashed a barrage of bullets in the Clay Terrace courtyard in Northeast DC on July 16, 2018. This was a consequence of ongoing feuds between rival gangs in the neighborhood. Graves underscored that the assailants aimed at the residents, firing recklessly, resulting in multiple casualties and the death of the young child. He further stressed that the verdicts underscore a commitment to holding both the perpetrators and those who assist them accountable.
The prosecution’s case suggested that Murchison, Taylor, Thomas, and two others fired over 50 shots, one of which struck Wilson in the heart, leading to her death. Wilson’s older sister and three others were also injured in the attack. Michals and Jeffers were charged with providing the firearms and the black vehicle used by the culprits during the crime.
Despite witnesses’ initial reluctance to cooperate, the government successfully obtained the convictions based on evidence such as motive, forensic analysis, social media records, videos, texts, and phone calls.
During the trial, prosecutors conveyed the tragic loss of Wilson’s life, stating that she “was shot in the heart and died on her mother’s doorstep.”
