Ex-Official Indicted on Murder Charges
Two Deliverymen Shot in January at Pr. George's Home

By Candace Rondeaux and Ruben Castaneda
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Former Prince George's County homeland security official Keith A. Washington was indicted yesterday on charges of murder and attempted murder, ending months of speculation about whether he would be prosecuted for shooting two unarmed furniture deliverymen at his Accokeek home in January.

Washington, who is also a county police corporal, has said that Marlo Furniture deliverymen Brandon D. Clark and Robert White attacked him and that he fired in self-defense. The evidence, however, showed that Washington suffered no injuries supporting that claim, said sources familiar with the investigation.

White, 36, has said that Washington opened fire without provocation after a dispute over the bedroom furniture the men were delivering to his home. Clark, 22, died before he was able to give a statement.

"Obviously, this has been a significant case for the community of Prince George's County," State's Attorney Glenn F. Ivey said as he announced the grand jury indictment yesterday at a news conference in Upper Marlboro. "We wanted to make sure we presented it in a fair way."

Washington, reached by phone at his home before the indictment was issued, declined to comment at length. "I really can't talk," he said. "It's really crazy how people have manipulated this situation."

The grand jury indicted Washington, 46, on charges of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder, along with lesser crimes, suggesting that it rejected his claim of self-defense and concluded that evidence showed the shootings were intentional but not premeditated. The charges of murder and attempted murder each carry a maximum term of 30 years.

Michael Worthy, an attorney for Washington, disputed the sources' assertion that Washington was not injured, saying that his client's neck was sprained and that he received a bruise. Police officers, who initially said they expected to charge the deliverymen with assault, have also said that Washington suffered unspecified injuries.

Worthy also said he had been told that forensic analysis showed that the shooting was at close range and that cocaine was detected in White's blood -- claims that were corroborated by the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case remains open. Worthy said cocaine was also detected in Clark's blood, a claim the sources denied.

Worthy expressed surprise at the indictment, saying he had been assured that physical evidence supported his client's version of events. "We believed that the police did an excellent job on the report, and we're surprised that the prosecutor charged him despite that evidence," Worthy said.

Worthy said Washington would voluntarily surrender when he is formally notified of the indictment. A Prince George's judge set Washington's bond at $150,000.

Worthy said he believes his client is being targeted for prosecution because of the high-ranking position he held in the administration of County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D), a claim that Ivey disputed. Washington, a former driver for Johnson, was appointed a senior homeland security official in 2004.

"I believe there's a lot of political pressure on the state's attorney's office with this case, and not only there but elsewhere," Worthy said. "It's highly politicized, not only because of that, but because of my client's political position."

Washington, who was born in Houston, joined the Army at 18. According to his résumé, he is a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve and has extensive training in counterterrorism. He worked on and contributed to Johnson's campaign in 2002 and made an unsuccessful bid to unseat County Council member Marilynn Bland (D-Clinton) last year.

The shooting at his home has attracted attention in part because of past abuse complaints against Washington. He has come under investigation at least three times by the Prince George's police department for complaints of assault or "unbecoming conduct" and has been sued at least twice, including once by a D.C. police officer who said that Washington assaulted him and had him falsely arrested.

Marilynn Clark, the mother of the deliveryman who died, said she was heartened to learn of the indictment. "He makes me sick to my stomach," she said of Washington.

Ivey declined to discuss the prosecution's theory of how a furniture delivery led to a double shooting or to address why seven months passed before his office secured an indictment. He said court precedent prevented him from describing the evidence that led the grand jury to believe White over Washington, a police officer of 17 years.

"My dad used to say, measure twice and cut once," Ivey said. "We wanted to make sure we got things right."

The indictment marks the second time this year that Washington has been charged with a violent crime. He was indicted in June on charges of first- and second-degree assault after being suspected of brandishing a gun at real estate appraiser Kevin King, who had mistakenly knocked on the door of his home in April.

Later that month, county officials said, Washington was no longer the homeland security deputy director, although they have not revealed the terms under which he left that job. He was also suspended from his police position.

In a statement to investigators a month after the shooting, White wrote that Washington was combative almost from the moment the deliverymen arrived at his home and that Clark phoned a supervisor to ask for guidance.

White wrote that Washington, displeased with the delivery, shoved Clark, ordering him out of the house. As the men headed for the stairs, White wrote, Washington opened fire.

White, Washington and Washington's wife testified before the grand jury last month.

Last month, Prince George's Police Chief Melvin C. High said that more than 50 witnesses had been interviewed and that investigators spent hundreds of hours gathering and reviewing evidence before turning the investigative file over to Ivey's office.

Michael Winkelman, an attorney for White, Clark's family and King, said Washington's indictment was good news for White and Clark's family, who have waited for months for the outcome of the investigation.

"The waiting has taken a tremendous toll. Although this will likely give some relief to know that the justice system is moving forward, it is certainly not the end," Winkelman said.

White, a convicted felon, said yesterday that he has had two surgeries and can't recall everything that happened in the first weeks after he was shot. He was hit in the right leg and in the torso, and he said he usually walks with a cane and has been unable to work because of his injuries.

He said he is looking forward to a trial. "They're getting ready to listen to what I'm saying," he said.