Brother states he tried to wake up the murder victim but failed

By Elizabeth Brady
– November 13, 2024
court | Daily Stories | murders | Shoot | Suspicious | Victim |

The victim's brother testified at the scene, “I tried to wake him up, but I couldn't.” That remark came as prosecutors continued their murder case on Nov. 12 before D.C. Superior Court Judge Robert Okun.

Mark Beasley, 52, is charged with first-degree murder with a weapon, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, assault with intent to kill with a weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm for the April 26, 2015, fatal shooting of Darryn Conte, in the 6900 block of 4th Street , NW, in front of a nightclub. Another person suffered injuries.

Beasley was convicted in 2017 and sentenced to 40 years in prison. The case was reopened in 2019 after the defense filed an appeal.

The victim's brother said the couple were at a nightclub listening to a band while a friend performed and danced until the lights came on. He noticed two men dancing around Conte and recalled: “It was kind of strange.” He later identified one of the men as his brother's suspected shooter.

The group later split up – one party, including the victim, returned to a vehicle and the other, including the witness, was not far behind. However, the group reunited after the shooting while the witness tried to save his brother.

The brother went to the police station for questioning and later the police retrieved the witness to identify the suspect. He allegedly chose Beasley from a photo lineup of nine “light-skinned, bald” men and told the court that this was “the person who murdered my brother.”

Prosecutors presented a forensic pathologist who conducted Conte's autopsy and detailed how the bullets entered the victim. He described how many of these were “intermediate targets,” meaning the bullet had to have penetrated another object before hitting the victim, causing “atypical wounds.”

The expert noted that the damage done to Conte's body was “incompatible with life.” Toxicology reports showed the victim had both alcohol and marijuana in his system. The medical examiner determined the cause of death was a shooting, which is similar to a homicide.

The final witness was a crime analyst who documented the damage done to the victim's vehicle during the shooting. She observed extensive bullet holes and fragments and repeated “copper-colored possible projectiles.” Most notably, one of these projectiles penetrated the passenger's headrest, where the victim was sitting during the incident.

The parties are expected to meet again on November 13th.