A jury on Tuesday convicted a Northeast D.C. man in the 2020 shooting death of a local father, closing the books on a Deanwood homicide that has hung over the neighborhood for years. After a nearly month-long trial, jurors found 38-year-old Jamil Whitley guilty of second-degree murder while armed and related weapons offenses in the killing of 32-year-old Kevin Redd. Redd, a father of four whose youngest child was born weeks after his death, was shot in an alley behind a Jay Street home and later died at a hospital. Sentencing is set for July 17, 2026.
How prosecutors say the shooting unfolded
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the case started with a quiet conversation at a gas pump. Surveillance video shows Whitley and Redd talking at a Shell station on Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue, prosecutors said. Whitley then left, only to return about 13 minutes later, this time wearing a surgical mask.
Prosecutors told jurors that Whitley drove Redd from the station to an alley behind 4722 Jay Street NE. Residential cameras captured a vehicle pulling into the alley and, within seconds, two gunshots rang out. Business surveillance later recorded a car speeding away from the area. The government argued that the video trail and other evidence tied Whitley to the shooting and supported convictions on one count of second-degree murder while armed along with multiple firearms charges. Whitley has remained in custody since his arrest.
What played out in court
Inside the courtroom, jurors watched a steady stream of video clips as prosecutors leaned heavily on surveillance compilations and police body-worn camera footage. The defense tried to punch holes in the case, pushing back on witness identifications and highlighting that no firearm was ever recovered.
Court reporting by DC Witness notes that prosecutors played numerous videos for the jury and called witnesses to walk them through how they identified Whitley in the footage. After nearly a month of testimony, the panel returned guilty verdicts on May 12, 2026.
Court schedule and charges
Superior Court Judge Danya Dayson has scheduled Whitley's sentencing for July 17, 2026. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle D. Jackson and Negar Kordestani, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. The Metropolitan Police Department reported that Whitley was arrested on August 25, 2021, and has been held in custody since that time.
Both the MPD and the FBI assisted investigators as they pieced together the surveillance trail and other evidence that would eventually be presented to jurors.
Background and neighborhood impact
The shooting rattled Deanwood when it happened in June 2020, cutting into an already tense year for the city. Police identified the victim as 32-year-old Kevin Redd in early coverage. Reporting from The Washington Post shows that officers found Redd suffering from multiple gunshot wounds in the 4700 block of Jay Street NE.
Local court coverage and statements from Redd's family during the trial highlighted how the case has loomed over loved ones and neighbors for nearly six years. With the verdict now in, Deanwood residents are watching to see what sentence the court hands down this summer.
