District of Columbia
Prosecutors dismiss case against suspect in 2017 murder of D.C. trans man
Distraught mother of victim is told lead witness went missing
At the request of prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney, a D.C. Superior Court judge on Aug. 17 dismissed a charge of first-degree murder and two gun related charges against a D.C. man arrested for the 2017 shooting death of a transgender man in a Southeast D.C. apartment where police say both men were living.
Court records show Akihs Gaius Green, 42, was found shot in the head execution style on March 1, 2017, in an apartment where he and the man charged with shooting him, Jordan Smith, 36, and Smith’s girlfriend, had been living at 212 Wayne Place, S.E.
Green died from the gunshot wound more than four months later on July 21, 2017, court records show. Charging documents show that D.C. police initially charged Smith with second-degree murder on Nov. 9, 2017, following an investigation into the incident.
At the request of prosecutors, a grand jury on June 11, 2018, indicted Smith on charges of First-Degree Murder While Armed, Possession of a Firearm During a Crime of Violence, and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm (Prior Conviction). Court records show Smith had a prior conviction of illegal possession of a gun.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office did not respond to a request by the Washington Blade for an explanation of why its prosecutors decided to dismiss the case. The office has a longstanding policy of not publicly disclosing its reasons for dismissing cases or not prosecuting cases.
Green’s mother, Vickie McNeal, told the Blade prosecutors in the case informed her last week that the lead prosecution witness in the case could not be found and they did not believe they could obtain a conviction at Smith’s trial, which was scheduled to begin on Sept. 12.
An affidavit in support of Smith’s arrest says the lead witness, identified only as Witness 2, was believed to have been Smith’s girlfriend. The affidavit says Smith and Green reportedly had been staying at her apartment at the time of the shooting.
McNeal said she believes Green, who was a friend of Witness 2, was visiting the apartment on the night of the shooting but was not living there.
The arrest affidavit says Witness 2 told police she saw Smith pull out a gun after he got into an argument with Green and she heard three shots fired, but she didn’t see who fired the gun. Another witness, according to the arrest affidavit, told police Witness 2 told that witness that she saw Smith shoot Green.
But Witness 2 denied she said that and has insisted she did not witness the shooting, the affidavit states. The affidavit also states that Witness 2 told police she was high on PCP at the time of the incident and her memory of what happened was unclear.
McNeal said prosecutors called her and visited her home to inform her of the decision to dismiss the case. She said their visit and phone call came after they informed her in June that the case was moving forward, and they were ready for the upcoming trial.
Among those who called and came to her home to tell her the case was dropped, McNeal said, were Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marybeth Manfeda and David Gorman, and witness-victim specialist Jennifer Clark.
“They were just saying they couldn’t find the witness,” McNeal told the Blade. “And I said the United States can find anybody they want to find. So, you can’t tell me they can’t find her. Because I say nothing has been done.”
Added McNeal, “I was hollering and crying and screaming for hours and made myself sick” shortly after being informed the case against the man she believes murdered her transgender child had been dropped.
The arrest affidavit says Smith told detectives who questioned him that his girlfriend and Green had been in a relationship at one time, but his girlfriend told him they were just friends at the time of the shooting. That raised speculation that Smith’s motive for the shooting could have been jealousy over his girlfriend having a relationship with Green.
But McNeal said she is convinced the motive for the murder was Smith’s anti-gay and anti-trans bias.
“He’s a hater,” she said. “He’s a hater of homosexual women. He’s homophobic and transgender phobic.”
Veteran D.C. defense attorney Cheryl Stein, at the Blade’s request, reviewed some of the court records for the case against Smith before it was dismissed on Aug. 17.
“Because I do not have access to most of the relevant pleadings in the case, I cannot give a definitive explanation of why the government dismissed the case,” she told the Blade. “But based on the documents that I have reviewed, it is clear to me that the prosecution determined that it simply didn’t have enough evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,” she said.
Stein noted that the defense raised serious questions about the credibility of the lead witness in the case, Witness 2, by citing her statements to police that she was on PCP at the time of the incident.
“When questioned right after the murder, she said she had no memory of the events,” Stein points out. “When a witness is so altered by drugs or alcohol that it affects their ability to accurately perceive and/or remember what they witnessed, they are disqualified from testifying,” she said. “Without that witness, the prosecution cannot possibly prove its case.”
Stein also points to court records showing the defense raised in a motion to “Suppress Tangible Evidence and Statements” that police allegedly violated Smith’s Miranda rights to remain silent when police took him into custody and obtained statements from him that could be incriminating.
“If those facts are correct, then nothing he said could be introduced at trial,” Stein said.
McNeal said her trans son, who went by the nickname Pinky, was a loving member of his family and was studying to be a medical technician. She said he had an associate degree from Prince George’s Community College and was attending the University of the District of Columbia at the time of his death.
District of Columbia
Capital Stonewall Democrats set to celebrate 50th anniversary
Mayor Bowser expected to attend March 20 event
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, members of the D.C. Council, and local and national Democratic Party officials are expected to join more than 150 LGBTQ advocates and supporters on March 20 for the 50th anniversary celebration of the city’s Capital Stonewall Democrats.
A statement released by the organization says the event is scheduled to be held at the Pepco Edison Place Gallery building at 702 8th St., N.W. in D.C.
“The evening will honor the people who built Capital Stonewall Democrats across five decades – activists who fought for rights when the odds were against them, public servants who opened doors and refused to let them close, and a new generation of leaders ready to carry the work forward,” the statement says.
Founded in 1976 as the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the organization’s members voted in 2021 to change its name to the Capital Stonewall Democrats.
Among those planning to attend the anniversary event is longtime D.C. gay Democratic activist Paul Kuntzler, 84, who is one of the two co-founders of the then-Gertrude Stein Democratic Club. Kuntzler told the Washington Blade that he and co-founder Richard Maulsby were joined by about a dozen others in the living room of his Southwest D.C. home at the group’s founding meeting in January 1976.
He said that among the reasons for forming a local LGBTQ Democratic group at the time was to arrange for a then “gay” presence at the 1976 Democratic National Convention, at which Jimmy Carter won the Democratic nomination for U.S. president and later won election as president.
Maulsby, who served as the Stein Club president for its first three years and who now lives in Sarasota, Fla., said he would not be attending the March 20 anniversary event, but he fully supports the organization’s continuing work as an LGBTQ organization associated with the Democratic Party.
Steven McCarty, Capital Stonewall Democrats’ current president, said in the statement that the anniversary celebration will highlight the organization’s work since the time of its founding.
“Capital Stonewall Democrats has been fighting for LGBTQ+ political power in this city for 50 years, electing people, training organizers, holding this community together through some really hard moments,” he said. “And right now, with everything going on, that work has never mattered more. This gala is the first moment of our next chapter, and I want the community to be a part of it.”
The statement says among the special guests attending the event will be Democratic National Committee Vice Chair Malcolm Kenyatta, who became the first openly gay LGBTQ person of color to win election to the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 2018.
Other guests of honor, according to the statement, include Mayor Bowser; D.C. Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5, the Council’s only gay member; D.C. Council member Anita Bonds (D-At-Large); Earl Fowlkes, founder of the International Federation of Black Prides; Vita Rangel, a transgender woman who serves as Deputy Director of the D.C. Mayor’s Office of Talent and Appointments; Heidi Ellis, director of the D.C. LGBTQ Budget Coalition; Rayceen Pendarvis, longtime D.C. LGBTQ civic activist; and Phillip Pannell, longtime D.C. LGBTQ Democratic activist and Ward 8 civic activist.
Information about ticket availability for the Capital Stonewall Democrats anniversary gala can be accessed here: capitalstonewalldemocrats.com/50th
District of Columbia
Owner of D.C. gay bar Green Lantern John Colameco dies at 79
Beloved businessman preferred to stay ‘behind the scenes’
John Colameco, owner of the popular D.C. gay bar Green Lantern, has died, according to a March 7 announcement posted on the bar’s website and Instagram account. The announcement didn’t provide a date of his passing or a cause of death.
Green Lantern manager Howard Hicks said Colameco was 79 at the time of his passing.
“It is with great sadness that Green Lantern announces the death of our beloved owner, John Colameco,” the announcement says. “Most of our patrons might have heard John’s name, but might not have known his face,” it says.
“He was a ‘behind-the-scenes’ kind of guy who avoided the limelight,” the announcement continues. “He preferred to stay in the back of the house with staff and team ensuring everything was running smoothly so that everyone out front was having a good time.”
The announcement adds, “As a veteran and businessman, John wasn’t a member of the LGBTQ + community, but he was one of the best damn allies our community has ever had.”
It says he “long provided spaces for the queer community to come together” since the 1990s when he owned and operated a popular restaurant on 17th Street, N.W. called Peppers.
According to the announcement, Colameco and his then business partner Greg Zehnacker opened the Green Lantern in 2001 in an alley off of 14th Street, N.W., between Thomas Circle and L Street, N.W.
The announcement points out that the Green Lantern first opened in the same location in the early 1990s before it later closed when the original owners decided to purchase and open other bars, one of which was the gay bar Fireplace near Dupont Circle. Colameco and Zehnacker were able to reopen the bar with the Green Lantern name.
“When Greg died unexpectedly in February 2014, John remained steadfastly committed to carrying on their vision and ensuring that Green Lantern remained part of the fabric of D.C.’s queer community,” the announcement says.
“Over the years, through Green Lantern, John has provided support to many community organizations, most notably Stonewall Sports, the Gay Men’s chorus of Washington, and ONYX Mid-Atlantic with Green Lantern serving as a gathering hub for their activities,” it states.
The announcement adds that Colameco’s family was planning a memorial for him in his hometown of Philadelphia.
“His Green Lantern family will celebrate his life by operating the bar as usual and we encourage you to stop by and join us,” it says. “Community coming together and having a good time – it’s exactly what John would want.”
District of Columbia
D.C. Black Pride theme, performers announced at ‘Speakeasy’
Durand Bernarr to headline 2026 programming
The Center for Black Equity held its 2026 DC Black Pride Theme Reveal event at Union Stage on Monday. The evening, a “Speakeasy Happy Hour,” was hosted by Anthony Oakes and featured performances by Lolita Leopard and Keith Angelo. The Center for Black Equity organizes DC Black Pride.
Kenya Hutton, Center for Black Equity president and CEO, spoke following the performances by Leopard and Angelo. Hutton announced this year’s theme for DC Black Pride: “New Black Renaissance.”
Performers for 2026 DC Black Pride were announced to be Bang Garcon, Be Steadwell, Jay Columbus, Bennu Byrd, Rue Pratt and Akeem Woods.
Singer-songwriter Durand Bernarr was announced as the headliner for the 2026 festivities. Bernerr gave brief remarks through a video played on the screen at the stage.
DC Black Pride is scheduled for May 22-25. For more information on DC Black Pride, visit dcblackpride.org.
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